# Upcoming VaPer Showdown



## Slow Triathlete

With all of the awesome VaPer blends out there I've decided to put a bunch to the test. Over the next few weeks I'm going to be conducting a VaPer showdown and see who comes out on top (Can you hear the corny western music in the background yet?). I have amassed a bunch of the favorites that have been talked about on here and I will be ranking them in order of preferance as I smoke them. Here are the contenders:

Escudo
PS Luxury Bullseye
McClelland 2015
H & H Anniversary Kake
McConnell Scottish Cake
Esoterica Dorchester
C & D Kajun Kake
CAO Treasures of Ireland - Limerick

I may have a few more in my cellar that I'm forgetting right now but they will be included in the rankings. Wish me luck.


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## Silky01

Definitely want to know the results. Still learning what all the baccy's are, so I may pick up a tin of your top contender and give it a try.


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## glassjapan

What....no Haddos???


*running like hell*


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## ultramag

glassjapan said:


> What....no Haddos???
> 
> *running like hell*


IHT has hoarded all the Haddo's up to age. :bn


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## IHT

:r
i had to check and make sure he didn't include Haddos, as it's NOT a Va/Per!! :c


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## Slow Triathlete

I knew better than to put Haddo's on there. Based on IHT's responses in the past. He's a Haddo Hater!!


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## Bridges

Maybe I'm just ignorant but what is a VaPer.


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## SUOrangeGuy

Virginia/Perique... 2015 is my favorite.


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## Joan

SUOrangeGuy said:


> Virginia/Perique... 2015 is my favorite.


Oh! COOOOL! I got some 2015! OH! W000t! And it just happens to be the TOTM, too! Oh oh oh, I know what I'm doing tonight after chores!

Hey SlowT, is that your final vaper list?

:cp


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## paperairplane

Let me save you some time:
1. Escudo
2. Who cares?

From what I have tried of your list: Escudo, Bullseye, 2015 in that order, with 2015 a solid step behind the other 2. 

2015 has "that smell" which I don't mind. I do mind that it doesn't rub out well, which makes it hard to light and ever very dry it does not like to stay lit. To me, I find it a vinegary, uncooperative FVF. I would smoke it certainly, but not buy it again. 

Drob sent me some Dunhill danish roll that was fan-tas-tic. Seemed a bit more refined than Escudo. I completely disagree that it is the same as escudo.


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## CigarGal

Hey Slow, be sure and add your reviews to the TOM. We are doing the 2015 this month-good timing.


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## Slow Triathlete

Well I smoked my first two contestants over the past couple of days. I decided to put Escudo against Stokkebye's Luxury Bullseye since they are so similar in appearance. Also, because I'm waiting on my order of 2015 and Anniversary Kake from pipesandcigars.

I smoked these pretty much back to back in seperate pipes. One day I smoked Escudo first and then followed it about an hour later with LBE and then did the opposite the next day.

I would have to say that Escudo appealed to me more. LB is kind of an Escudo Lite if you will. Escudo had a more pleasing taste and aroma to me. It seemed that the tobacco was married a little bit better than the LBE.

The LBE was also a lot more dry coming out of the pouch. The Escudo stayed a bit more moist in the tin that it was in when I cracked it open. This might have to do with the better flavoring. The Escudo had a more date/fig/dried grapes smell while the LBE had a more grassy/hay smell. The LBE was still sweet smelling but in less of a fruity way.

Both tobaccos lit and stayed burning well. I dried them out about even so this didn't surprise me. The LBE kind of lost it's taste and started to sour at the end of the bowl.

Here are the standings so far:

1. Escudo
2. LBE

I plan on tackling the Dorchester and the CAO Treasures of Ireland - Limerick next.

After that, I'm going to pit the two Kake tobaccos against each other.


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## Slow Triathlete

Joan said:


> Hey SlowT, is that your final vaper list?


Let me look through my stash tonight. I'll let you know if I have others.


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## pistol

Slow Triathlete said:


> Hey SlowT, is that your final vaper list?
> 
> Let me look through my stash tonight. I'll let you know if I have others.


Dude, are you talking to yourself?:chk


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## Slow Triathlete

Ha-Ha, no it was a quote from Joan. I just forgot the quotation marks.


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## Mad Hatter

Slow Triathlete said:


> Ha-Ha, no it was a quote from Joan. I just forgot the quotation marks.


Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre you did :tu """"""""


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## Joan

Ooooooh, ST, I had some of that 2015 today... YUM!

(Could there be such a thing as a vaper I _don't_ like?)(giggle)

Looking forward to your showdown results, ST!


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## Slow Triathlete

Well today was a Dorchester day. I went through the whole sample that Ultramag sent to me last month (Thanks again!!). And after my enjoyment of this blend I've decided that it is now in 2nd place.

Like most people who reviewed this blend, I found that this had the least amount of Perique in it compared to the others that I have smoked so far. However, the taste was still great and somewhat creamy. The perique and the virginias were seperate in the beginning and it was a bit spicy when I finally got it going. After about a third of the bowl the blend settled down and melded together well.

I did have an issue lighting this one. I dried it correctly but I had one clump of tobacco sitting on top that refused to light. After two attempts I scooped that piece out of there and it lit perfectly. This blend stayed lit better than the other two so far. It required two relights but I believe that it was more my fault because my brother called and I was trying to smoke, review, and talk to him all at the same time.

I would recommend this blend to anyone who is just getting into VaPers and doesn't want to get blasted with Perique right off the bat.

The standings so far:

1) Escudo
2) Esoterica Dorchester
3) Stokkebye Luxury Bullseye Flake

On a side note, I found a sample of Esoterica Dunbar that will enter into the contest somewhere.


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## EvanS

Nice work on the showndown Scott. I'll be curious how many here would come up with the same order of preference that you do.


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## Slow Triathlete

Slow day at work so I finished another piece of the puzzle for this competition. I know that price sometimes plays a role in what people smoke and just in case anyone wants to try a blend that is in here I've included a price list of the blends in this showdown. These are where I found it the cheapest on the websites that I shop on. You might find them cheaper in other places. 

Blend Price	Where
C & D Kajun Kake $6.50	JRs
CAO TOI Limerick $7.10	Smokingpipes.com
Dorchester $8.15	Smokingpipes.com
Escudo $7.25	JRs
H & H Anniversary Kake	$8.00	Pipesandcigars.com
LBE $6.59	Smokingpipes.com
McClelland Bulk 2015	$6.00	Pipesandcigars.com
McConnell Scottish Cake	$7.57	Pipesandcigars.com


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## hyper_dermic

May i suggest you add the following to your showdown list.
PCCA - Beacon 
Solani - 633 

VA and Va/Pers are always battling it out as my most smoked blends...

Solani - 633 has been a pretty consistant blend for me... comes in nice rectangular flakes.

I've recently cracked open a tin of Beacon from last year and it damn near blew my socks off. the quality of the VA tobacco really makes the blend special. Im quite fond of McCellands VA tobaccos, add to that good quality (real) perique and you have an amazing combo.

-hyp


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## IHT

i see you have PS LBE on there. i've been smokin the poo out of the sample of PS Luxury navy flake and i think it's nestling itself up there in 2nd behind Escudo, and with a little more time, may tie or take over (that's how much i like it).


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## Slow Triathlete

I don't have the Solani, PCCA, or the PS Luxury Navy Flake in my rotation. I've been looking for an excuse to run down to Low Country Tobacco (smokingpipes.com) lately. Now I have my excuse.

I'll have to see where I can get some of the PCCA from. Do you have to be a member to order it?


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## Slow Triathlete

C & D Kajun Kake

Well, I smoked about three bowls of this yesterday. I had had this before but wanted to see if my opinion on this had changed. This is one of those blends that I really, really wanted to like but I just don't and I can't really put my finger on it.

These come in small brick-like cakes that are wrapped very carefully and placed in the tin. The pre-light aroma is awesome. The cakes smell like chocolate brownies!! This is one of those blends where the smell doesn't match the taste. The cakes arrive right around the right moisture level so I only let these dry for about 20 minutes before I packed my pipe. 

The main components in this blend are Red Virginia Cavendish and Perique. Now you might be fooled into thinking that since it is a cavendish then it is going to be sweet. You would be far from the truth. It is not sweet at all and that may be why I don't really like it. It has a very dark taste similar to unsweetened chocolate or bakers chocolate to me. Someone on Tobaccoreviews.com likened it to smoking a very dry cigar. I would agree with that. There is also quite a bit of Perique in this blend but the virginias and the perique never seem to blend to me. Not to say that this is a bad blend, it just wasn't the taste that I was expecting. I think that the care of packaging and overall quality of the tobacco makes this an above average blend but you have to like the taste of it.

Overall, like I said above, I think that this is a quality blend but it just wasn't my cup of tea. I will probably trade this one out with someone who either wants to try it or really likes the taste of this one. If you're interested in a trade them PM me. I have 1 whole cake and about half of the other one left.

Overall Standings:

1) Escudo
2) Dorchester
3) Luxury Bullseye
4) Kajun Kake

In other news, I'm still waiting on my Scottish Cake, 2015, and Anniversary Kake to come in from pipesandcigars.com. I called there yesterday and they were waiting on the Scottish Cake to come in before they shipped. Really nice people there!! Anyway, I will probably concentrate on the CAO TOI Limerick and the Esoterica Dunbar until the others come in.


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## IHT

Slow Triathlete said:


> I'll have to see where I can get some of the PCCA from. Do you have to be a member to order it?


don't have to be a member, just hope they have some left.
http://www.pipeguy.net/Tobacco.htm


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## Slow Triathlete

It probably won't enter in the running. I've already spent my pipe tobacco money allotment for this month. The wife will have my head if I order any more. I already tried the "Honey, we're doing comparitive analysis here. It's all in the name of science" line on my wife. She didn't buy it.


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## tzilt

Slow Triathlete said:


> "Honey, we're doing comparitive analysis here. It's all in the name of science" line on my wife. She didn't buy it.


Well, you could always whip out the tried and true, "Hey, we've both been working really hard, we each deserve a little treat, lets each take $20 and get something nice for ourselves."


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## hyper_dermic

My fav line is that my purchases are an "investment".

You see, these pipes and tobacco will only be going UP in value as they become more rare and limited. Therefore, i have to buy triple the amount that i would normally smoke myself.
And i should be buying the best available today. as it may not be available tommrow.

=)

-hyp


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## Slow Triathlete

Ha, I thought that I was the only one who used the "Investment" excuse. Only I tell her it is an investment for future relaxation. All the cigars and pipe tobacco that I own are to keep me away from high blood pressure, heart issues, stress related diseases etc.


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## Joan

hyper_dermic said:


> My fav line is that my purchases are an "investment".
> 
> You see, these pipes and tobacco will only be going UP in value as they become more rare and limited. Therefore, i have to buy triple the amount that i would normally smoke myself.
> And i should be buying the best available today. as it may not be available tommrow.
> 
> =)
> 
> -hyp


:tpd:

That there is PERFECT rationalization advice.


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## CigarGal

Slow Triathlete said:


> Ha, I thought that I was the only one who used the "Investment" excuse. Only I tell her it is an investment for future relaxation. All the cigars and pipe tobacco that I own are to keep me away from high blood pressure, heart issues, stress related diseases etc.


Does she buy it?


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## Slow Triathlete

Not really. She just smiles and shakes her head. It scares me when she does that!!


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## Slow Triathlete

Well, after a couple of day's absence, I'm ready to review another blend. This time it is the CAO/Dan Treasures of Ireland-Limerick blend. I also have the good news that the order that I placed with pipesandcigars.com is finally going to get here. Apparently they were waiting on the McConnell Scottish Cake to come in. With that said, I will now be able to review the McC 2015, H&H Anniversary Kake, and the McConnell Scottish Cake.

Right, now back to the Limerick blend. I have to say that this blend smelled better in the tin than any of the others so far. It has a very sweet Virginia smell and to tell you the truth, I didn't really smell any Perique in there. This blend comes in flake form so I grabbed two flakes and rubbed them out to dry. I let this dry for about 2 hours as it is rather moist in the tin.

It packed decently even with the long flake strands in there. It was a little hard to light up but once it was lit it burned very well. I had mostly sweet Virginia tastes in the first part of the bowl but then the Perique kicked in a bit and stayed present for the rest of the bowl. It may have been that when I rubbed it out and packed the pipe I may have separated the tobaccos a bit. Either way, once it got started I knew that this was going to be a great blend! This blend is kind of in between Escudo and Dorchester as to the amount of Perique involved. It isn't hidden in the background like Dorchester but it's not really in your face like Escudo.

This was a well behaved blend and it didn't require many relights. It burns down to a grayish-white ash that is very easy to tamp. It burns very cool and I never had any hint of bite from this blend. I have to admit that this blend didn't wow me the first time that I smoked it. But after the first, it got better and better with each consecutive smoke. It took me a while to notice the subtleties of the different Virginias playing off of the Perique. It is medium in strength and can probably be smoked throughout the day. 

All in all, I really liked this blend and will definitely buy more. This blend almost unseated Escudo as my favorite. Almost. I rank this one a solid second.

Here are the standings so far:

1) Escudo
2) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
3) Dorchester
4) Luxury Bullseye Flake
5) Kajun Kake


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## Slow Triathlete

Okay, looks like I'm back on track with the reviews here. I was going to review the Hearth & Home Anniversary Kake in this post but the past few bowls that I have had shows that this blend is still too wet for my tastes and it would not be fair to judge it in that state. So instead I will be reviewing the Robert McConnell Scottish Cake, not to be confused with their Scottish Flake offering. I know that IHT has recommended it in the past as a good VaPer and when I called pipesandcigars.com to order it, I told them about the VaPer comparison that I was doing. The gentleman on the phone stated that they had some on order but I had to wait for it because this was his favorite VaPer. With those two recommendations and what I've read on tobaccoreviews.com, I knew that this was going to be a good, possibly great, blend.

I got the tin the other day and I immediately cracked it open and took a whiff. Mmmm, it smelled like the sour fruitiness of the Virginias and the peppery spice of the Perique. I think that I read somewhere that this might have a small amount of burley mixed in there for good measure. It is a course cut flake and I rubbed it out a little more to help with drying. The appearance is kind of a red, and light and dark browns (mostly dark brown). I let it air out and dry for about 15-20 minutes and then loaded it up into my Peterson Bent Bulldog.

Right off of the bat this was a great tasting blend. Lighting was extremely easy with only one false light. As the bowl progressed, the flavor got fuller and fuller and leveled out at about a medium to full in taste and strength. The Virginias provide the sweetness throughout and while there is a decent amount of Perique in this blend it never overpowers the taste. It's always there in the background and weaves itself in and out through the Virginias. It has a great, lively flavor that never goes flat. Also, I never had any kind of tongue bite even though I'm sure I got it going hot a few times. The Virginias never go sour either.

The smoke aroma comes off as sweet and fruity and for some reason it smells a bit chocolaty to me. Not sure why that is or if it's another scent that I just can't identify but it is close to chocolaty.

Now, I know that I'm going to cause a stir by saying this but I enjoyed this more than Escudo. And the tin of Escudo that I've been smoking from is 4 years old. Escudo seemed to have a lot of ups and downs throughout smoking it whereas this blend is steady throughout. It burns slow and it didn't require a lot of relights from me. With that said, this is just me and my opinion. I know that Escudo has a huge following and I'm one of them but I'm ranking this one above Escudo. Not far above.

Here are the standings so far:

1) McConnell - Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
4) Dorchester
5) Luxury Bullseye Flake
6) Kajun Kake


Here are the blends that are remaining:

Dunbar
McClelland Bulk 2015
H & H Anniversary Kake
Bayou Morning (Just received this in a PIF so I thought that I'd include it)


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## IHT

Slow Triathlete said:


> So instead I will be reviewing the Robert McConnell Scottish Cake, not to be confused with their Scottish Flake offering. I know that IHT has recommended it in the past as a good VaPer and when I called pipesandcigars.com to order it, I told them about the VaPer comparison that I was doing. The gentleman on the phone stated that they had some on order but I had to wait for it because this was his favorite VaPer. With those two recommendations and what I've read on tobaccoreviews.com, I knew that this was going to be a good, possibly great, blend.


glad that i could help, it's a great tobacco.


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## hagen

> The smoke aroma comes off as sweet and fruity and for some reason it smells a bit chocolaty to me. Not sure why that is or if it's another scent that I just can't identify but it is close to chocolaty.


i do think there's been added as well chocolate as cherry flavouring to scottish cake.


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## dayplanner

hagen said:


> i do think there's been added as well chocolate as cherry flavouring to scottish cake.




I don't think there's any topping in scottish cake. Interesting review. Scottish cake is one blend I just never got. People reccomended it to me, I read great reviews here, bought a tin and bleh. First tin was just bland, smoked maybe seven or eight bowls, let it dry out, tried another two bowls, tossed the rest. Bought a second tin a few months later, same thing. Smoked less than half and pitched it.

Nice set of reviews so far, I missed this thread when it started. You skipped my favorite vaper though, Solani 633!


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## Slow Triathlete

633 will probably end in here eventually.


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## buckloner

any chance you could ad Pease` Fillmore to the line-up ? 
Fillmore is my all-day smoke . I was hooked on it from the start . Although there was an issue with quality last year , if you can get a tin from `06 or from `08 you are almost sure to get _the_ stuff its supposed to be.
I`d be interested in Fillmores` ranking among your line-up.


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## Slow Triathlete

So, I decided to bundle all of the remaining bulk blends together into one post because only one of them really knocked my socks off. These three include McClelland's Bulk 2015, Hearth & Home Anniversary Kake, and I just recently got some Stokkebye Luxury Navy Flake so I thought that I would include it in here.

I'll start off with the ones that didn't really impress me. First off is Stokkebye's Luxury Navy Flake. When I put my nose down into this one I didn't really smell much and what I did smell was more like buttered popcorn than any kind of Virginia or Perique. Weird, but that's what I smelled. This comes in small flakes that are a bit smaller than Orlik's Golden Sliced flakes. It had the right amount of moisture right off the bat so I rubbed some out and packed it in.

To summarize the whole smoke I would say that it was bland. Bland to the point of monotony. I kept hoping that maybe, just maybe the taste, strength, or spiciness would develop somewhere but it didn't. Nothing stood out to me with this blend. Oh and it had a bite like a rabid dog when I smoked it a bit too fast. This one is going to the bottom of the list.

Up next was McClelland's Bulk 2015 blend. Originally this blend was a pain in the butt because it came extremely wet and no matter how much I rubbed it out it never seemed to dry out. Finally, I put my sample on a cutting board and minced it as I do garlic. It finally broke up small enough that it was able to dry out. I did smoke a bowl before it was dried out enough. I was extremely disappointed because I had to relight so many times that I couldn't take notes well enough to give a proper review. After chopping this blend into oblivion I was able to smoke it almost to the bottom of the bowl. Even though this blend is pretty good for a bulk blend, I feel that the amount of prep work just isn't worth it to me. However, if you are very patient with this then you will be rewarded with a fine bulk blend. The different Virginias taste very good against the amount of Perique that is in this blend. Taste-wise this was a very good blend but like I said earlier the amount of work to get it there just isn't for me. I put this one just above the Kajun Kake blend because the taste was a lot better than the Kajun Kake.

And finally, Hearth & Home's Anniversary Kake. This blend is made for pipesandcigars.com by master blender Russ Ouellette. I had never had any of his blends before this one but everyone raves about his skill. After tasting this blend I believe them. I ordered 4 ounces of this about a month ago. I spoke with someone there before I got my order and he stated that when they make this, they make it in a 3 lb cake and then split it out from there. He also stated that they run the machinery that makes this blend pretty much 24 hours a day to keep up with demand. My sample was about an inch thick and looked like it had been ripped off of the larger block. It was extremely dark brown and smelled wonderful. The only way to get this blend smokable is to rip off a hunk, rub it out and then rip off another hunk. By the time that I got done my hands were a bit stained but I didn't mind because it was fun rubbing it out. This is a hard blend to describe when you rub this out. It just kind of falls apart and packs into the pipe extremely easy. I went to do my false light and soon realized that this was all I needed to get this blend going. From there this blend never stopped surprising me. This bulk blend was better than a lot of tinned blends that I have tried so far. The description on their website states that there are many different Virginias in this blend, from Brown to Lemon and it has a healthy dose of Perique added in. Although I'm not experienced enough to know that difference in taste between a Brown or a Lemon Virginia, I can say that this blend is delicious. The flavors change throughout the smoke and the Perique really kicks in towards the end of the bowl. I thoroughly recommend this blend not only as a good, cheap bulk blend but possibly as an everyday smoke. I plan on grabbing a couple of pounds of this, separating it into smaller samples and cellaring it. I want to see how this blend changes over time. This blend has now taken over 3rd place.


Okay, here are the results so far:

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) H & H Anniversary Kake
4) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
5) Dorchester
6) Luxury Bullseye Flake
7) McConnell Bulk 2015
8) Kajun Kake
9) Luxury Navy Flake

After several people requested this be added, I was finally able to pick up some Solani 633. In addition, I grabbed some Gawith's St. James Flake as well. I also have Dunbar and Bayou Morning Flake to add as well. 

I never knew how many good VaPer blends were out there until I started this. I hope that these reviews are helping everyone out because it's been a lot of fun reviewing and judging these.


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## Joan

[applause]

Excellent reportage, Mr Tri! Good writing, too!

I for one feel particularly fortunate you are doing all the homework for us (me).


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## Slow Triathlete

I'm heading out for a long weekend. When I get back I'll update with reviews of the Salani and the Bayou Morning Flake.


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## Silky01

I've been watching this thread, and just finally had my first VaPer last night of PS Luxury Navy Flake. It was delicious! But, appearently it's pretty far down on this list. Makes me want to get some of those others to try now!


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## Slow Triathlete

Okay, sorry for my absence but I am now officially back in town. In other news, I just ordered a new Peterson (picture below) and picked a tin of Filmore and a tin of McC St. James Woods. These have now entered the showdown. By my count I have 7 more blends to try. And they are:


Solani 633
Gawith - St. James Flake
Dunbar
Bayou Morning Flake
Reiner Long Golden Flake
McC - St. James Woods
Filmore (added for buckloner)


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## Slow Triathlete

Smoking some Salani in the new pipe. I think the tobacco is too wet and the pipe too new because I'm not getting what everyone else does with this blend. I'll try it in a more broken in pipe and dry it out. I'll smoke it a few more times before I post the review about it.


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## hyper_dermic

solani blends tend to come moist... the perfectly pressed flakes tend to hold the moisture well too.

if your gonna smoke the flakes whole, let them sit out for a good while before smokin em... something like 30-45min depending on your humidity.
If your gonna rub em out, then you can probably get away with 20-30min

633 is currently my fav va/PER... has been for quite some time now.
But i did pick up a tin of Scottish Cake and Dorsico... Ive tried them back when i 1st started with the pipe and i wasnt too fond of them... but then again, i didnt like latakia either... what a difference a year makes. 

Anyways, your Scottish cake review reminded me of them, so i picked up some new tins..
Im waiting to finish my tin of escudo before i crack one of those open.

Tell ya the truth, im having a real hard time getting through this Escudo. The Last Va/Per tin i smoked was Beacon, and 633 before that.. i know many will disagree, but feel the New production Escudo just isint as flavorful as other Va/Pers on the market.

-hyp


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## malinois1

You may want to add Hearth & Home Louisiana Red to your test. It has been one of my favorite VA/Pers! Also H&H VA Spice is very nice, but it has a touch of cigar leaf in it.


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## Slow Triathlete

Okay, so I'm finally sitting down and smoking the much touted Filmore by GL Pease. I have to say that when I first opened this tin I was immediately mad because I could swear that it smelled like it had Latakia in there. Well, after airing out for a bit I noticed that whatever that initial strong odor was it was fading and was pretty much gone by the time I finished drying this stuff out.

It's kind of funny how I came about adding this stuff to the showdown. I was calling down to smokingpipes.com about getting some info on the new Peterson that I wanted to buy and I got talking to a guy down there named Adam. Now I've been in their store a few times and Adam is the guy I always go to. He's a young guy, probably in his mid to late twenties and kind of eclectic. The first time that I met him he was wearing some plaid pants straight out of the seventies, a black t shirt, and some horn rimmed glasses. I was a bit taken aback by his appearance but quickly found out that he is incredibly knowledgeable about pipes and pipe tobacco. He has a quick wit and a very dry sense of humor. Anyway, I digress. I had told Adam about my VaPer Showdown the last time I was in the shop probably about a month ago. Well on the phone the other day he asked me how it was going. I replied that I had never realized how many VaPers were out there and when I think I have most of the good ones covered someone suggests another one. He kind of laughed and said, "Well, I was talking to an older gentleman the other day about your comparison and he stated that it would be a 'Bloody Travesty if I didn't include Filmore'". Now, I'm unsure if I have ever committed a Bloody Travesty in my whole life and I certainly don't want to start now. With that said, here's my review of Filmore.

After I got it dried out and aired out a bit I lit up the first of five bowls before I wrote this review. If there is anything to be said about GL Pease I will say that his tobacco is consistent. Every bowl was exactly like the other and there were never any hidden surprises or let downs. This blend comes in what I would call a broken flake. There were still some pretty big pieces in there that I rubbed out so that the whole tin was pretty consistent size-wise. The appearance is mostly dark brown with some lighter or darker spots here and there. This is listed as being a Red Virginia with a "generous" amount of Louisiana Perique mixed in. 

This blend packs really well. So well that I had to dump it a few times because I felt that I had packed it too tight. Upon lighting this blend up I was greeted with great billowing white clouds of some of the creamiest tobacco I have ever tasted. It lasted through the first five or six puffs and then the perique joined in it created a mix of both creamy and spicy, peppery and chocolaty that I haven't encountered in any of the blends so far in the showdown.

About halfway through the bowl I also started to detect some hints of caramel but very faint and somewhat muted in the background. Something that I also found is that this is a very slooooooowwwwww burning blend. It will keep you around for awhile but it is worth the extra time. 

The end of the bowl was more of the same but I was finally realizing just how much nicotine is in this blend. It's not bad but it is definitely noticeable.

Now this blend is definitely not a sweet Virginia blend as are most of the others so far. This one I can only classify by saying that it is mellow. Mellow in a good way. Mellow like waking up after an afternoon nap or going to a jazz bar to drink and hang out. That's what this blend is like. No bite, no hassle, pure enjoyment.

I thoroughly enjoyed this blend but I don't think that the taste is as good as Scottish Cake or Escudo. But this is above Anniversary Kake in quality. 

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) GL Pease Filmore
4) H & H Anniversary Kake
5) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
6) Dorchester
7) Luxury Bullseye Flake
8) McClelland Bulk 2015
9) Kajun Kake
10) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## dhaus

Can't wait to read what you think of St. James Woods. That's the only VA/per I've tried and I liked it. Have a list of Va and Va/per from the thread I started and want to try some when the weather breaks. Samuel Gaiwith's FVF and escudo are on the top of the list.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Another contender enters the ring...................Gawith & Hoggarth Louisiana Flake.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

dhaus said:


> Can't wait to read what you think of St. James Woods. That's the only VA/per I've tried and I liked it. Have a list of Va and Va/per from the thread I started and want to try some when the weather breaks. Samuel Gaiwith's FVF and escudo are on the top of the list.


It's still drying out. It came rather wet.


----------



## dhaus

Yep. I let mine dry out for a week or two before trying it.


----------



## IHT

i just tried some of the st. james woods this afternoon.


----------



## kheffelf

IHT said:


> i just tried some of the st. james woods this afternoon.


cool


----------



## nozero

paperairplane said:


> I do mind that it doesn't rub out well, which makes it hard to light and ever very dry it does not like to stay lit.


What does "it doesn't rub out well" refer to please? Noob here...


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Putting the flake or cut flake into your palms and then rubbing them together. It's a term for breaking up the tobacco into smaller pieces.


----------



## Alyks

Slow Triathlete said:


> Another contender enters the ring...................Gawith & Hoggarth Louisiana Flake.


I tried a couple of bowls of this before I put the rest in jars; I remember I liked it very much. But then again I'm a sucker for chocolate.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

I was intrigued by the "gift donation" to my VaPer challenge that I received from EvanS and decided that I would go ahead and review one of the blends that he sent me. The blend that I chose was Telegraph Hill from GL Pease. This is the second entry on this showdown from Pease, Filmore is a hard one to beat but we will see how Telegraph Hill ranks.

The sample that I got was a bit too dry for my tastes so I put the sample in a bowl and put a wet towel over the top of it for about 4 hours. After that I pulled some out and started loading my pipe. This stuff was really easy to load and tamped down really easily.

Upon lighting this blend up I was greeted with very, very mild Virginias. I didn't taste any Perique in there yet but since I have experienced this before with other blends I wasn't too worried about it. This blend burns very cleanly and doesn't require any relights.

Okay, getting near the middle of the bowl and I am still waiting for any kind of appearance from the Perique. I get subtle whiffs of it as I'm smoking but nothing that ever tastes like it in my draw. Now I had read some of the reviews on tobaccoreviews.com and knew ahead of time that this blend was pretty light on the Perique but I certainly wasn't expecting this.

Down at the bottom of the bowl now and there has been the vague appearance of Perique right near the end of the smoke.

Overall, I didn't like the blend as a VaPer blend. As a Virginia it was pretty good. It was very mild and never presented a problem either to my tongue or to the burn of the blend. This blend would probably serve as a good bridge for a straight Virginia smoker to start down the VaPer road but I think that anyone who is a VaPer smoker will find this blend way too plain. This one will take 9th position because it is so low in Perique. With that said, I still enjoyed it better than Kajun Kake and Navy Flake.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) GL Pease Filmore
4) H & H Anniversary Kake
5) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
6) Dorchester
7) Luxury Bullseye Flake
8) McClelland Bulk 2015
9) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
10) Kajun Kake
11) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Had a few bowl of the Reiner Long Golden Flake over the weekend. I'll be posting the review for it later today. So far I have 11 blends reviewed and it looks like I have 13 more to do. This list keeps getting longer and longer!!! Here's what I have left to review:


G & H Louisiana Flake
H & H AJ's VaPer
H & H Louisiana Red
H & H Virginia Spice (not sure if this will be in the review because it has some cigar leaf in it)
C & D Night Train
C & D Bayou Morning Flake
Dunbar
Reiner Long Golden Flake
Solani 633
Gawith St. James Flake
McC St James Woods
Former's Birdseye Flake
Paul Olsen Blend #111


----------



## hagen

Slow Triathlete said:


> Had a few bowl of the Reiner Long Golden Flake over the weekend. I'll be posting the review for it later today. So far I have 11 blends reviewed and it looks like I have 13 more to do. This list keeps getting longer and longer!!! Here's what I have left to review:
> 
> 
> G & H Louisiana Flake
> H & H AJ's VaPer
> H & H Louisiana Red
> H & H Virginia Spice (not sure if this will be in the review because it has some cigar leaf in it)
> C & D Night Train
> C & D Bayou Morning Flake
> Dunbar
> Reiner Long Golden Flake
> Solani 633
> Gawith St. James Flake
> McC St James Woods
> Former's Birdseye Flake
> Paul Olsen Blend #111


this is an exciting series of reviews!

as for olsen's #111 i'm rather surprised to see it in the list. last i tried it (some 5 years ago...) it was a sweetened va-ky blend. i detected no perique. but they may have changed the blend, of course.


----------



## BigKev77

olsen's 111 is a Va spiced with per and ky :tg


----------



## Slow Triathlete

I won't put it in here if you guys don't want me to.

There are a few blends that will make it here into the showdown that are not "true" VaPer blends. They may have one or two other components but I tried to keep it so that the two main ingredients are Virginia and Perique.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Okay, so I have smoked a few bowls worth of Reiner's Long Golden Flake and am finally ready to review it.

First off, I have to touch on what this stuff looks like coming out of the can. I received this in a New to Pipes trade. It came in a big golden 100g can that looked like a gaudy German Christmas gift. Very little of the writing on the can is in English and most of it is in German. And there really isn't a description of what is inside the can. Anyway, when I popped the lid I was very surprised to find what was inside. It had a total of 3 flakes in there that were about 4 inches wide and 15 inches long all wound up in there begging to be rubbed out. They looked like FVF flakes on steroids to be exact.

The tin aroma was very "Virginia-ey" with the normal dried fruit (raisons, dates, etc) smell wafting from inside. I could smell a little bit of Perique in there but not much. The flakes themselves were very golden in color (hence the name) but there were dark flecks mixed in here and there. 

I went ahead and rubbed out the whole tin because I'm not what you would call skilled at smoking tobacco in its flaked form. I usually end up getting frustrated and then being mad the whole smoke so I just avoid that by rubbing it out fully. Once this was at the consistency that I like I went ahead and packed a bowlful. The tobacco was a bit moist but nothing like McC's 2015 or some other blends that I have seen.

Lighting this up was fairly easy. I think it took about 3 matches to finally get this one going. During the first half of the bowl this was pretty much a sweet Virginia smoke. The Perique would slide in and out every once in awhile making its presence known but was not the main component of the first half of the bowl. I would say that the first part of this smoke was going rather well. It was a very smooth, easy smoke. Based on the taste I can tell that this blend has a lot of high quality tobacco in it. Once the blend got going I didn't have to relight during the first half.

In the second half of this blend, the Perique seemed to make an appearance more often and with a bit more strength. And the blend turned a bit creamier smooth and had a bit of a buttery taste to it. I know that this blend also is supposed to have a bit of White Burley in it so that may have brought about the creamy, buttery taste. I'm not sure. It was very pleasant however.

Overall, this is a very well put together blend and is made with some high quality tobacco. It has an initial flavor very similar to FVF but has some different taste undertones as you progress through the smoke. The price is another concern for me. While this is a fantastic blend, unless I win the lottery someday it will be in my rotation only as a "treat" smoke and not a daily smoke. If money is not a problem for you then I would say buy a few tins. One to smoke now and a few to cellar. If money is a problem for you then I would suggest that you try this at least once in your pipe smoking lifetime. It's worth the extra $$ to try once. 

For the taste and the smoothness of this blend I think that it now holds the 5th place position in the showdown. I feel that it has a higher quality tobacco than those below it but the Perique amount wasn't enough to go any higher.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) GL Pease Filmore
4) H & H Anniversary Kake
5) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
6) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
7) Dorchester
8) Luxury Bullseye Flake
9) McClelland Bulk 2015
10) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
11) Kajun Kake
12) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## BigKev77

Slow Triathlete said:


> I won't put it in here if you guys don't want me to.
> 
> There are a few blends that will make it here into the showdown that are not "true" VaPer blends. They may have one or two other components but I tried to keep it so that the two main ingredients are Virginia and Perique.


This is your baby. Make it do what it do. I am loving it. 
My favorite thread:tu


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Does anyone have any Paretti's Park Square that I can trade for?


----------



## JacksonCognac

I don't have any Park Square, but I wanted to drop in and say that this is a very cool thread, some interesting reviews... there are a LOT of vapers... this could take a while.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Okay, this time my review will focus on another VaPer blend from pipesandcigars.com. This one is Hearth & Homes AJ's VaPer. As with most of the H & H blends, this one is blended by Russ Oullette. This is how it is described on their site:

_Blended with Andrew (AJ) Smith, this is a different turn on the Virginia/Perique genre. A variety of red __Virginias__ is combined with a generous amount of Perique, and the mixture is slightly mellowed and sweetened by __Green River__ black Cavendish._

Now I had high expectations for this blend because I love their Anniversary Kake and I have smoked a few bowls of their Louisiana Red so I know that Russ knows how to blend a VaPer. I was not let down at all. Read on.

First off the bag aroma was amazing! I opened up the ziplock and stuck my nose in. This blend has more of a sour smell than a lot of the other VaPer blends that I have tried so far. And you can also smell the Perique. That's a good sign because now I know that there is a decent amount in there.

The blend came to me a bit dry so I stuck it in a bowl, wet a wash cloth with distilled water and put it over the top of the bowl for about 6 hours. Every few hours I would take the towel off and stir the tobacco around so that it re-hydrated evenly. After that I let it rest for a few days and then started smoking it. This review is after 6 bowls of this blend. I smoked it in both my Peterson #268 Zulu and a Peterson #80S Bent Bulldog and it performed well in both.

Packing was easy as this comes in a ribbon cut. I mostly used the gravity method and then pushed down another pinch on top. This seemed to work out rather well. Lighting was also extremely easy. The aroma that came out of the bowl reminded me a lot of Scottish Cake for some reason. For the half of the bowl my initial impressions were that this was absolutely the best bulk blend VaPer I have ever tried. Everything seems balanced throughout the whole smoke. There are never any ups or downs and I am wondering if it is the addition of the Cavendish that keeps everything flowing smoothly. 

For the second half of the bowl the Perique does seem to pick up a bit. Not enough to deter most people but it definitely lets you know that it is there. This one smoked cool enough for me that it went all the way to the bottom of the bowl without any gurgling or steam sounds coming out of the bowl.

I will say that I did get one bowl going way too hot and smoked it way too fast. The result was a sour, "burnt" taste that lasted the rest of the smoke even after I had set it down to cool. My advice is to smoke this one slowly and you will be rewarded for the extra time.

Overall, I liked this blend more than the Anniversary Kake that is available from the same site. Like I stated above, this is by far the best bulk VaPer I have tried in this Showdown. I have two others from them, Louisiana Red and Virginia Spice, that I can't wait to smoke. This one has taken over 4th place.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) GL Pease Filmore
4) H & H AJ's VaPer5) H & H Anniversary Kake
6) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
7) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
8) Dorchester
9) Luxury Bullseye Flake
10) McClelland Bulk 2015
11) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
12) Kajun Kake
13) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## RJpuffs

I got meself some VA and VA/Per's and have been popping tins like a kid on chrismas morn. Sammy G's FVF and St.James Flake, Mac B's VA flake, and GL P's Fillmore.

Dumb question time - I know what VA's taste like, but what is Perique supposed to taste like?

The FVF was out of this world - never had anything quite like it before, must order more. I tried the St. James today - it has the FVF hay-like VA flavor, but the perique seems to eluding me? I do get a pepperminty zing, and a sour-tabasco aftertaste on le' tongue. Is that the perique (or was it last night's chili)?

Tomorrow is Fillmore day, can't wait!

The MacB VA Flake was a dissapointment, after FVF probably anything would be a dissapointment.



RJ


----------



## hyper_dermic

Perique is both peppery, and somewhat like stewed fruit. Its a strange bird...
It quite depends on the blend.. and it changes as you progress through the bowl.. but peppery and stewed fruit is the best way i can describe it.

-hyp


----------



## RJpuffs

hyper_dermic said:


> Perique is both peppery, and somewhat like stewed fruit. Its a strange bird...
> It quite depends on the blend.. and it changes as you progress through the bowl.. but peppery and stewed fruit is the best way i can describe it.


I guess my zingy peppermint would be close :tu

I just had my first bowl of GL P's Fillmore. If my impression of FVF was WOW, for Fillmore I would have to say *WOW.*

Creamy, definite VA without the hay flavor of Sammy G, and (what I assume) is the perique. This baccy wants to BURN, I smoked this from 9am till noon, with breaks of course this is a pipe bowl not an urn. It burned down to a white ash all the way to the bottom. Savored every fleck of it. Mind numbing greatness. Must order more. Lots more. Brown truckfulls.

I must thank all the primates herein for their awesome recommendations, with trillions of blends to choose from - the reviews and discussions on CS make it so much easier to experience these glorious flavors. My palate thanks you all!

RJ


----------



## DubintheDam

1. Scottish cake
2. PS Lux Bullseye
3. Escudo
4. Old Joe Krantz
5. Haddo's
6. Solani 633

3,000,000 place: Dorisco, the most God awfully creation every put on the planet! To finish the tin I have mixed: 4 parts Dorisco; 2 parts Pete's Sherlock Holmes, 1 part Nightcap and 1 part McConnells Pure latakia. It is now bearable, but really it needs another 2 parts solid VA to create a nice scottish blend!

I think these placings could shift around. Just popped a tin of Scot Cake this week...it is so sweet and grassy. I think it gets no. 1 because of its sweetness and consistancy/solidness. I also popped a tin of 633 this week, my first, very good quality, the perique is just 'brushing on the shore'. However first impressions were a little disappointing, very nice though, I think the tin needs to breathe a bit, i can see it moving up a place or two. OJK is really growing on me, to me it's a bit like a pipe, cigarette and cigar rolled into one, just a good old tobacco taste, hits the spot when you don't want to think too much.

P.S. I should add I still have to pop my tin of Reiner's LGF!

dub


----------



## BigKev77

RJpuffs said:


> I guess my zingy peppermint would be close :tu
> 
> I just had my first bowl of GL P's Fillmore. If my impression of FVF was WOW, for Fillmore I would have to say *WOW.*
> 
> Creamy, definite VA without the hay flavor of Sammy G, and (what I assume) is the perique. This baccy wants to BURN, I smoked this from 9am till noon, with breaks of course this is a pipe bowl not an urn. It burned down to a white ash all the way to the bottom. Savored every fleck of it. Mind numbing greatness. Must order more. Lots more. Brown truckfulls.
> 
> I must thank all the primates herein for their awesome recommendations, with trillions of blends to choose from - the reviews and discussions on CS make it so much easier to experience these glorious flavors. My palate thanks you all!


Guess I'm gonna have to try some Filmore. "Mind numbing greatness"


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Well I finally got to smoke some of Perreti's Park Square over the past few days. A few people were kind enough to send some my way and now I have around 4 ounces of the stuff!! Thanks everyone.

This is one of the house blends put together by the Perreti company at their store in Boston. Here is the description of the blend on their website:

_Red Virginia, Matured Virginia and Stoved Virginia are delicately spiced with just the right amount of Perique to create a rich and complex blend whose character evolves and emerges throughout the bowl._

Boy was I surprised by the appearance and texture of this blend. It is listed on tobaccoreviews as a "broken flake" but the sample that I got would be classified more as a ribbon cut. The only word that I can think of to describe it is fluffy. It is very fluffy and springy and at first appearance appears to be really damp. Boy was I wrong. This blend seems to defy the moisture rules that I have come to learn. Packing it was extremely easy and it pushed down into the bowl without any pressure having to be exerted on it.

The light was also easy. I had to wait for it to go out after the false light because it wanted to keep going!! Once this was lit it was off to the races!! I now see why this is one of everyone's favorites. And again I am surprised at the quality and taste of a "house blend". This is sold in bulk and like AJ's VaPer and Anniversary Kake the taste and behavior of this blend outshines many of the more expensive tinned blends. The taste and burn stayed pretty consistent throughout the whole bowl. Doesn't smoke hot and there is very little dottle when you get to the bottom.

I would classify this one as a mild to medium blend that could be smoked all day long if you wanted to. It has about a medium amount of Perique in it. Not the most I've smoked in a blend but certainly not the least either. It is also very smooth when you smoke it. The different tastes play off of each other but never outshine each other. I think that they mixed the individual components of this blend perfectly. I think that this one will take over 5th place. I enjoyed it more than Anniversary but I like the taste and Perique amount of AJ's VaPer more.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Escudo
3) GL Pease Filmore
4) H & H AJ's VaPer
5) Peretti's Park Square
6) H & H Anniversary Kake
7) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
8) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
9) Dorchester
10) Luxury Bullseye Flake
11) McClelland Bulk 2015
12) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
13) Kajun Kake14) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## RJpuffs

bigkev77 said:


> Guess I'm gonna have to try some Filmore. "Mind numbing greatness"


PM if you want a sample to try.

RJ


----------



## BigKev77

RJpuffs said:


> PM if you want a sample to try.
> 
> RJ


Thanks RJpuffs, for the generous offer!!!!:tu:tu


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Sorry I've kind of fallen off the wagon with this review. Been super busy at work lately and I've been traveling alot. I will get my reviews for SG St. James Flake and Hearth & Homes Louisiana Red up in the next few days.


----------



## CigarGal

FVF? This abbreviation appears all over this thread but I can't find anything that works out to be these letters. At least, not on your list. WHAT IS IT?


----------



## smokinmojo

CigarGal said:


> FVF? This abbreviation appears all over this thread but I can't find anything that works out to be these letters. At least, not on your list. WHAT IS IT?


Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Flake.


----------



## CigarGal

smokinmojo said:


> Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Flake.


Ahhhhhh...SGFVF!


----------



## RJpuffs

CigarGal said:


> Ahhhhhh...SGFVF!


A slice of heaven, or flake of heaven in this case.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Good morning everyone. Well after a long hiatus from reviewing I am back and ready to update with another review. This time the lucky tobacco is Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake. One thing that I must mention about Gawith's flakes is that I love how they basically fall apart when you take them out of the tin. Now I've never mastered the art of folding and stuffing flakes so I always break them up to some degree. Gawith's flakes seem to be thinner than a lot of flakes and broken flakes (McClelland) and are really, really easy to rub out and pull apart. Because they are thinner, they also seem to dry out a lot faster before smoking them whereas a lot of the other brands take forever!! Another great plus in my book.

As a lover of Gawith's Full Virginia Flake (FVF), I knew that they had the Virginia blending down to a science but I was curious as to their knowledge of throwing Perique into the mix. Here is how this blend is described:

_A sumptuous blend of __Virginias__ and Perique, this big, bold British style flake incorporates a generous proportion of __St.__ James Parish, LA perique. _

The tin aroma was typical fruity and spicy, maybe more on the spicy side, which is what I would expect from the description of this VaPer. The Virginia aroma is very reminiscent of FVF and I suspect that they might use a Virginia blend very similar to it. I took out a tin of FVF and gave them both the "sniff" test and they the Virginias were almost identical.

As stated above, I took a couple of flakes out of the tin and gently rubbed them out and let them dry for about 30 minutes before I loaded up the bowl. It was very easy to light and had a white ash right off of the bat. This blend burns extremely clean, just like FVF. During the smoke, the Perique dances along with the Virginias almost as if to a beat. It comes to the front then goes to the back and so on and so on. It was a great experience!!

Now I am going to go against what most people on tobaccoreviews.com have stated about this blend. A lot of people on there have stated that the Perique quantity in this blend is way over the top and that there is a high level of nicotine in this blend. I did not find either of these statements true for any of the bowls that I smoked of this. And I have smoked two tins so far. While the Perique is noticeable in this blend it does not come to the front and punch you in the face with its strength like other blends (Kajun Kake, Night Train, etc). Also, there is nicotine in here but not anymore than I have experienced in other blends. 

This blend is very tasty to me and the price when buying in bulk really can't be beat. Taste-wise, I enjoyed this more than Escudo. The reason is that the two types of tobacco (Virginia and Perique) seemed to be blended together with more consistency than Escudo. I have smoked Escudo where I almost didn't have any Perique until I hit the bottom and then it came on too strong. St. James Flake is not like this. The Perique chimes in as if on cue every time. It's a wonderful blend and will be a staple in my rotation and cellar from now on. This one takes over 2nd place.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake
3) Escudo
4) GL Pease Filmore
5) H & H AJ's VaPer
6) Peretti's Park Square
7) H & H Anniversary Kake
8) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
9) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
10) Dorchester
11) Luxury Bullseye Flake
12) McClelland Bulk 2015
13) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
14) Kajun Kake
15) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## RJpuffs

Slow Triathlete said:


> Good morning everyone. Well after a long hiatus from reviewing I am back and ready to update with another review. This time the lucky tobacco is Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake. ...


Good review! I agree, this is a real nice blend. The flavor of FVF with a pinch of Perique thrown in. I have noticed that the kick of the Perique varies from bowl to bowl, I've had some where its set my mouth afire (requiring a drink) - but most bowls are mildly melded. Smokes cool and consistent, and burns down to a fine white ash.

For all Sammy G's flakes, I am unable to stuff-n-fold them. For one thing the flakes are often cut into varying thicknesses, making it difficult to guess a fit for a smaller bowl pipe. They are also very springy (and moist), the flakes tend to want to unfold and leap out of my bowl. Ripping it apart and lightly rubbing is all that is needed, they do disintegrate easily.


----------



## BigKev77

WOW I didn't expect SJF to place so high. Better than Escudo, I will have to add this to my order as well. I LOVE FVF!!

Keep up the great work. Maybe start a thread where the rest of us list our top 5 VaPers.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

bigkev77 said:


> Keep up the great work. Maybe start a thread where the rest of us list our top 5 VaPers.


That is an excellent idea!! I'm going to post the thread right now.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

I wanted to give an honorable mention to Hearth & Home's Virginia Spice. While listed as a VaPer with some cigar leaf in it I would switch that around and state that it is more a cigar blend with some Virginia and Perique thrown in. It kind of falls in the category of VaPer-like, similar to Haddo's, but there is other stuff thrown in to alter the tastes a bit.

Regardless, this was a great blend to smoke and I would highly recommend it to anyone who may be burnt out on VaPers or someone who just wants to try something a little different.

The taste and aroma for this blend takes you on a rollercoaster ride. One minute it smells and tastes like a VaPer, the next it smells and tastes like your smoking a Macanudo Maduro. All in all, it's a tasty blend, burns well, no bite, and the price is good.


----------



## BigFrankMD

St. JamesWoods from McClelland is another VaPer. Any thoughts on that, I'm thinking about getting a tin.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

BigFrankMD said:


> St. JamesWoods from McClelland is another VaPer. Any thoughts on that, I'm thinking about getting a tin.


I have some that is yet to be reviewed. I'll put that one up for one of the next ones. I know that a lot of people like that one.


----------



## BigFrankMD

Slow Triathlete said:


> I have some that is yet to be reviewed. I'll put that one up for one of the next ones. I know that a lot of people like that one.


Awesome bro. :tu


----------



## Alyks

I am wondering if you plan to add H&H LJ Heart Virginia to your show down. The description says it has a 'whisper of perique'. I smoked this a couple of nights ago, and I loved it. Even the wife liked the way it smells, and she usually hates the smell of any baccy.

If anyone is interested in reading a review, I plan to smoke a few more bowls before writing one.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Alyks said:


> I am wondering if you plan to add H&H LJ Heart Virginia to your show down. The description says it has a 'whisper of perique'. I smoked this a couple of nights ago, and I loved it. Even the wife liked the way it smells, and she usually hates the smell of any baccy.
> 
> If anyone is interested in reading a review, I plan to smoke a few more bowls before writing one.


I haven't ordered any of that one yet.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Up next is Gawith and Hoggarth's Louisiana Flake. Now whereas Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake was small and demure, G & H's version of this genre is a goliath!! I'm not sure if this is sold in a tin and is smaller but the sample I got was from their bulk selection and good Lord those flakes are huge!! I would say they are about 1.25 inches wide by 6 inches long!!

The aroma of this blend is a bit odd as there is more than a hint of chocolate in there. There is also the Lakeland floral that I enjoy so much as well. As far as I can find, this is the only VaPer offering from the venerable Gawith and Hoggarth company. Could it be that we have a mix of something similar to Gawith's St. James Flake mixed with G & H's Bob's Chocolate Flake? This possible combination has piqued my interest and so on to the review.

As I stated above, these flakes are large and take a bit to rub out. I got a pair of scissors and cut them down a bit before I started rubbing them. The moisture level seemed perfect when it was in flake form but once I cut it down it seemed a bit damp to me. So I set it out on a paper towel for about 30 minutes and it seemed ready to go.

After being cut down the flakes become a lot more pliable and this blend is fairly easy to stuff down in the bowl. The pipe I used had a medium-large size bowl. It might not be as easy trying to stuff these strands into a small bowl like on a churchwarden. It took to the lighter really fast and after one false light it was off and racing.

The initial flavors were easy to discern. Virginia, yep it's in there. Perique, yet it's in there too. Lakeland taste, yep it's in there. But there is something on the outlying edges that was just whispering in there. After a few puffs I was able to identify it. Chocolate. Now because I had never run into this flavor combination I was excited and worried all at the same time. I was excited because the tastes coming together at this point were delicious but I was worried that if one started to dominate then the great taste would diminish. 

After the halfway mark my worry began to slip away. They had nailed this blend. It was great all the way through. I highly recommend this blend. While it may not be your favorite, the addition of the chocolate to a VaPer blend is something interesting to behold. It also makes this blend hard to rank. I think that this blend will take over the 8th spot. I could rank it higher but because the chocolate taste is added it's not a true VaPer taste and it would be unfair to the genuine VaPers above it.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake
3) Escudo
4) GL Pease Filmore
5) H & H AJ's VaPer
6) Peretti's Park Square
7) H & H Anniversary Kake
8) G & H Louisiana Flake
9) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
10) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
11) Dorchester
12) Luxury Bullseye Flake
13) McClelland Bulk 2015
14) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
15) Kajun Kake
16) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## Guest

Slow Triathlete said:


> Up next is Gawith and Hoggarth's Louisiana Flake. Now whereas Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake was small and demure, G & H's version of this genre is a goliath!! I'm not sure if this is sold in a tin and is smaller but the sample I got was from their bulk selection and good *Lord those flakes are huge!! I would say they are about 1.25 inches wide by 6 inches long*!!


Samual Gawiths flakes in bulk are that size too, they use the same box size for their 1 pound of flake as G&H does.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

I have a pound box of Samuel Gawith's St James Flakes and they are long and skinny. I must have got a weird batch of the Louisiana Flakes because these things were a lot bigger. I did however only buy 4 oz. of Louisiana Flake. Do they have a different size for their loose bulk?


----------



## Guest

Slow Triathlete said:


> I have a pound box of Samuel Gawith's St James Flakes and they are long and skinny. I must have got a weird batch of the Louisiana Flakes because these things were a lot bigger. I did however only buy 4 oz. of Louisiana Flake. Do they have a different size for their loose bulk?


I can't really say for sure about Samuel Gawith's St James Flake its not one i've gotten by the pound but i've found the other Sam G flake to be wide and long. But who i'm i say, our understanding of size Vs size may be off. And loose bulk is taken from the 1 pound packages and more often then not is broken to a degree because its abit dryer which makes it weak.


----------



## frankluke

how many more blends are you gonna try?

i wonder where beacon would fit in, do you have that/want to add it to the showdown?


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Root, 

I just figured out what I was doing wrong in the flake size comparison. I went back to my notes and I believe that I was comparing the bulk G & H Louisiana Flake to the smaller tinned version of the St. James Flake. I didn't have the bulk St. James Flake in my cellar yet. That is a newer addition (as in last weekend newer).


Frankluke,

Funny you should mention Beacon. I just got home a short while ago and there was a box waiting for me on my front porch. It was from Bruce (hunter1127). He traded me a tin of 2006 Christmas Cheer for a tin of Scottish Cake. Inside the box were a couple of stowaways!! There was a small sample of P & W High Hat and Rattray's 3 Noggins (K & K Blend) and there was also half full tin of Beacon sitting in there. So thanks to Bruce I can now say hell yeah Beacon is in the showdown!!! Thanks again Bruce.

Here are the blends that I have left so far:

PCCA Beacon
H & H Louisiana Red
C & D Night Train
C & D Bayou Morning Flake
Dunbar
Solani 633
McC St. James Woods
Former's Birdseye Flake
Paul Olsen Blend #111

There may be more that I have stashed away but that is all that I can think of off of the top of my head.


----------



## BigFrankMD

There is a bulk form of St. James Flake?


----------



## Slow Triathlete

There sure is. Check out:

http://www.smokingpipes.com/tobacco/by-maker/samuel-gawith/bulk/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=25469

They sell out of it frequently so you have to jump on it when it is available. I bought a 1 lb box when I was down there last weekend (or two weekends ago. I forget).


----------



## BigFrankMD

cool, I didnt know it was sold in bulk. I dont like it as much as the 2015 bulk va/per but I feel its worth having on hand!


----------



## squeeze left

Slow Triathlete said:


> Here are the blends that I have left so far:
> 
> PCCA Beacon
> H & H Louisiana Red
> C & D Night Train
> C & D Bayou Morning Flake
> Dunbar
> Solani 633
> McC St. James Woods
> Former's Birdseye Flake
> Paul Olsen Blend #111


Great reviews! Can't wait to hear how Night Train ranks.


----------



## IHT

i don't think i've said this at all, but i'm really impressed with the thread and reviews. not cuz i'm a va/per 'ho, but because of the work you've done... very cool.

_"You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Slow Triathlete again."_


----------



## Alyks

IHT said:


> i don't think i've said this at all, but i'm really impressed with the thread and reviews. not cuz i'm a va/per 'ho, but because of the work you've done... very cool.
> 
> _"You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Slow Triathlete again."_


Agreed. RG heading your way.


----------



## smokinmojo

IHT said:


> i don't think i've said this at all, but i'm really impressed with the thread and reviews.


Absolutely! Everyone puts their palate/thoughts on the line for one tobacco or cigar. This is a classic thread. (I have read the thing from start to finish a couple times, and i'm sure it'll be a couple more.)

Kudos


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Thanks everyone for your kind remarks. This has turned from just a Showdown to me to a passion so to speak. After reviewing so many blends one would think that you would become jaded to trying anymore but I always look forward to the next blend. While I didn't know that there were so many different VaPers out there when I started I'm glad that there is a wide variety of choice in this genre. Everyone's tastes are different but I hope that my reviews give a little bit of guidance to everyone when they are delving into the wonderful world of VaPers. Okay, enough of this. Let us move on to the next review.


*Woooo Woooo, it's time to hop on the train. The C & D Night Train that is.*

Everyone who I talked to about this blend had the same response. "Get ready, you're in for a ride. I hope you like nicotine!!" And then they would usually chuckle. They all told me that this was one strong smoke and not to smoke it on an empty stomach. 

I ordered a 4 oz sample of this from pipesandcigars.com and it arrived in brick form so I quickly started pulling it apart and rubbing it out a little bit. It seems to have the perfect moisture content straight away. I put this in a jar to let it rest a bit after rubbing it out and unfortunately I forgot about it. Now it's about two months later and I think that it's about time to break this stuff out and give it a whirl. 

Right off the bat this blend gives off a sweet/sour fruity kind of taste. Delicious in my opinion. The spiciness of the Perique also kicks in very early on. Whoa, I can tell already that this one is going to pack a punch. This blend stays lit better than most that I have encountered. But watch out because if you start puffing on this too fast you will regret it. I let it get away from me one time when I was reading and not paying attention. Didn't really notice anything except the spiciness of the Perique became almost overwhelming and the next thing I know my head starts to swirl from the nicotine. I actually had to put the pipe down and go to bed after that one.

If you take your time with this and sip on it very slowly it is a very, very good smoke. The sweet/sour flavor remains pretty consistent throughout the smoke but the sour takes over a bit near the end but not in a bad way. The spiciness of the Perique is present the whole way through and really adds to this blend I feel. It adds a kind of dark spice that plays in contrast to the sweet/sour flavor that I mentioned.

I assume that the room aroma is as strong as the blend because at one point my wife walked out on the porch and said, "Man, that stuff smells like it would kick your butt!" She wasn't far off of the mark.

While I wouldn't recommend this to a new pipe smoker, if you have a few years under your belt I would highly recommend it. Some people enjoy the stronger stuff and some don't. I think that I lie somewhere in between. While I will definitely keep this on hand for an occasional smoke there is no way that I could smoke this on a daily basis. For those of you who may be cigar smokers I would compare this blend to the La Flor Dominica Chisel. This is so far the strongest blend that I have smoked so far in this genre but it mixes strength with great taste and that is what sets it apart. I think that this is going to take over the 9th spot. While it could go higher based on the quality of the tobacco I feel that the overwhelming strength of this blend actually hurts it because, for me at least, I can't smoke it everyday. Someone who likes the stronger blends more than I do would probably rate it higher. I'll leave it up to your judgment.

Here are the current standings:

1) McConnell Scottish Cake
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake
3) Escudo
4) GL Pease Filmore
5) H & H AJ's VaPer
6) Peretti's Park Square
7) H & H Anniversary Kake
8) G & H Louisiana Flake
9) C & D Night Train
10) Reiner's Long Golden Flake
11) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick
12) Dorchester
13) Luxury Bullseye Flake
14) McClelland Bulk 2015
15) GL Pease Telegraph Hill
16) Kajun Kake
17) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## BigFrankMD

once again thanks for the reviews. looks like its time to stock up!


----------



## Slow Triathlete

After a long hiatus, filled with too many other blends, I give you the next installment in the VaPer Showdown.

Well, I'm sitting down with yet another blend from the Hearth & Home stable. This time it is Rolando's Own. This is one of the last VaPers from pipesandcigars.com that I have not tried. I ordered this one on kind of a whim due to the fact that no matter how hard I searched and how many people I had asked, not many people knew about this blend and even fewer had actually tried it. So in the name of curiosity and this showdown I decided to order half a pound and check it out for myself.

Here is the description off of the website:

_Named for renowned pipemaker Rolando Negoita, this is a Virginia/Perique blend with Rolando's artistry in mind. A mixture of lemon, red and stoved __Virginias__ is enlivened with a moderate dose of wonderful Perique, for a sweet and flavorful all-day smoke._

I have read a lot online that some of their blends are getting shipped out a little raw and need to age a bit more. This is probably due to the fact that most of their blends are so good that it is hard to keep up with demand. My plan with this blend is to smoke 3 or 4 bowls and then put the rest away for a month and see how it has changed in that time.

Okay, off to the review.

The first thing that shocked me about this blend was how light the color of it was. It has a lot of light tan tobacco in there some dark browns and some near black. It has a wonderful aroma fresh out of the bag. It had the spicy/sour smell of a VaPer that I have grown to love so much. This tobacco comes as kind of a mix cut. Some small pieces and some longer pieces mixed together. It says that it is supposed to be a ribbon cut on tobaccoreview but they are not really any kind of uniform length to me. Packing and loading was really easy with this one. I had to take care not to pack it too tight in there (I'm trying to learn from past mistakes). Lighting it was pretty easy as well. This blend came with the proper amount of moisture in it. I just put it out for 15 minutes before I packed it and I had no trouble lighting it or keeping it lit throughout.

I have to say that the different Virginias add an interesting twist to this blend. It is a bit sweeter than most of the others that I have tried. Not sure if this is due to the addition of the Lemon Virginias or not but I like it. The flavors are a bit muted in the first third of the bowl but they all seem to fall into the groove a little before the halfway point. I would agree with their description as to the Perique amount in this blend. I would say it is moderate to medium. It's not going to overtake the blend but it is also not in the background. Take your time with this one. I learned the hard way that if you puff too fast then the blend can turn a bit harsh. 

This blend maintains its sweetness to the bottom of the bowl. The spiciness also kicks in a bit more towards the bottom.

Overall I think that this was a really good VaPer. I rank it right up there with my other current favorite of theirs, AJ's Blend. It doesn't taste the same. AJ's is a bit more bold but Rolando's makes up for it in flavor. I think that this one is my third favorite bulk VaPer behind AJ's and Peretti's Park Square. Now I don't know Rolando and will probably never be able to afford one of his pipes but I will agree with him on this blend. It is very tasty!!


1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore 
5) H & H AJ's VaPer 
6) Peretti's Park Square
7) H & H Rolando's Own 
8) H & H Anniversary Kake 
9) G & H Louisiana Flake 
10) C & D Night Train 
11) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
12) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
13) Dorchester 
14) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
15) McClelland Bulk 2015 
16) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
17) Kajun Kake 
18) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## squeeze left

Thanks for another great review!
I re-read your Night Train review, too - very similar take as my own. I love the end of the bowl where the "sour" taste takes over.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

After a poignant letter and tobacco donation from EvanS stating

"Time to get back to the VaPer Showdown slacker!!"

I've decided that it's time to resurrect this thread. He sent me one of the original tins signed by Craig Tarler of Exhausted Rooster.

I still have a bunch to review so it's time for the fun to begin!!

Blame Samuel Gawith's Best Brown Flake for my departure from this showdown.


----------



## Joan

Slow Triathlete said:


> After a poignant letter and tobacco donation from EvanS stating
> 
> "Time to get back to the VaPer Showdown slacker!!"
> 
> I've decided that it's time to resurrect this thread. He sent me one of the original tins signed by Craig Tarler of Exhausted Rooster.
> 
> I still have a bunch to review so it's time for the fun to begin!!
> 
> Blame Samuel Gawith's Best Brown Flake for my departure from this showdown.


Hee hee... okay, D--N YOU SAMUEL GAWITH BBF!

Oooo, that sounds... kinda cute!

And props for the prodding, EvanSsence! The Showdown Must Go On!

p


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Joan said:


> And props for the prodding, EvanSsence! The Showdown Must Go On!
> 
> p


Don't encourage him. Then he gets all high and mighty!!


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Now for something completely different.

Well not that different (forgive me Eric Idle). There are a few VaPer hybrids that I would highly recommend. One of those would be Haddo's Delight commented on by a lot of people on this board. Another would be the Exhausted Rooster that EvanS sent to me. Exhausted to me seems more like a Virginia/Burley (golden sliced) with a bit of Perique mixed in. Since Evan is always trying to pull people over to the dark side of Burley, I truly believe that this is his attempt to tarnish my beloved VaPers with the vile leaf of Burley that he so loves. Sorry Evan, evan a tin signed by Craig Tarlor won't pull me over to that dark side.

One final that I gave props too earlier was the Virginia Spice blend from Hearth & Home. While I appreciate these blends very much, I feel it an injustice to put them in the Showdown due to the fact that the Perique plays such a small role in the overall blend.

The above three along with Peterson's Irish Oak would all be in the top 8 of VaPer hybrids if I were ever to put a list together. Another notable mention would be Waccamaw from Low Country Tobacco (smokingpipes.com). This blend is made for them by none other than the mighty man Craig Tarlor from C & D. This VaPer is made with red virginias (which I love, think Hal O' The Wynd) and also has Izmir Leaf in the blend which adds an extra spice of oriental in there.

Also, if you are a lover of the VaPer blends and you haven't noticed from my reviews, you people really need to hop onto the Hearth & Home website and order some of their bulk blends. Russ is doing a great job with these blends and I enjoy them (and their price) a lot more than some of the more expensive tinned blends.

And now for some dancing chickens:

:chk:chk:chk:chk:chk:chk


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Louisiana Red is another bulk VaPer that is available from Russ and the people at pipesandcigars.com. It is one of their Hearth and Home blends. I was very excited when I first read the description of this blend. It was taking my favorite Virginia tobacco (Red) and turning it into a VaPer. I thought to myself, "Great, Hal O The Wynd with a generous amount of Perique thrown in there."

Here is how the blend is described on their site:

_A great sweet and spicy blend containing two different Red __Virginias__ and a good amount of outstanding St. James Perique. The rich, round sweetness of the __Virginias__ are complimented by the plum and pepper hints of the cool-burning Perique. An overwhelming favorite of our local pipe club members._

The blend is mostly reddish with black perique here and there. It is kind of a long strand cut and smells divine in the bag. Mine arrived with a medium amount of moisture in the bag. I dried it out for about 15 minutes and packed the pipe with ease.

The first half of the pipe was rather harsh. The aroma was good but the two tastes just didn't seem to meld together very well in the beginning. One minute it tasted like pure Virginia and then the next minute I was hit with pure Perique. It didn't blend together harmoniously like it should have. I will note here that I came back to this blend after letting it sit for about 2 months and the tastes had melded together beautifully. When I originally received it the blend may have been a bit raw.

For both the fresh blend and the aged blend, the sweetness of the Virginias seems to become muted towards the end of the bowl and it becomes a bit sour. Not unpleasantly sour but you can tell the difference. I would say that this blend does have a decent amount of Perique in there. 

Overall, this is a very good blend. If you get a batch that is raw like mine was in the beginning, then set it aside for awhile and come back to it. I promise that you won't be disappointed. While this certainly does not have the nicotine hit of Hal O The Wynd I will say that the Virginias tasted very similar. I think that this one will take over the #11 slot.

This is probably the last VaPer blend that I will review of the Hearth & Home Series. There is another VaPer blend listed on their page called LG Heart Virginia but it only lists that it has a "whisper" of Perique in there. Since I like a medium to full amount of Perique, this one probably will never be ordered for the Showdown. I am really impressed with the Hearth & Home's selection of VaPers. They have 4 that I reviewed for this Showdown plus the LJ Heart Virginia and Virginia Spice, which is a VaPer with cigar leaf blended in. For a blending house to have that many Vaper blends is outstanding. All of the ones that I reviewed were each different in their own way. I really learned a lot about flavors while smoking these.

Here's the ratings so far:

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore 
5) H & H AJ's VaPer 
6) Peretti's Park Square
7) H & H Rolando's Own 
8) H & H Anniversary Kake 
9) G & H Louisiana Flake 
10) C & D Night Train 
11) H & H Louisiana Red
12) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
13) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
14) Dorchester 
15) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
16) McClelland Bulk 2015 
17) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
18) Kajun Kake 
19) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## squeeze left

Glad to see you've resurrected this thread! On your review I got me some Scottish CAke and love it.


----------



## Big D KC

Bravo!! This thread alone added about 6 tobacco's to my ever growing list to try!! Having been on a va/per bender as of late this was a great read from start to finish! I can only hope you will update soon with more blends! I am especially curious about the McClellands St James Woods! I got a tin from '05 or '06 that I am curious about..


----------



## dmkerr

Big D KC said:


> Bravo!! This thread alone added about 6 tobacco's to my ever growing list to try!! Having been on a va/per bender as of late this was a great read from start to finish! I can only hope you will update soon with more blends! I am especially curious about the McClellands St James Woods! I got a tin from '05 or '06 that I am curious about..


I've got a tin of that from '95 that I haven't gotten to yet. Let me know when you open yours and I'll swap you some. We'll see if the extra 10 years does anything. LOL!


----------



## Big D KC

I looked just now and it is indeed from '06 Dan, and you got a deal! Would love to swap some with ya! Only problem is I have no idea when I'll get to it lol. I have so many samples still left from trades with you good fellas that I am just buying stuff now to stock up on! I have committed to only smoking through all the samples before cracking any new tins, so it could be a couple months!  I have to admit though a tin of the escudo is begging to be opened! Self control...self control!!

I also went ahead and picked up a tin of the McConnell's Scotish Cake tonight as well! And I rec'd the Maccanaw I bought from a fellow here, and I picked up another tin of McClellands Oriental #14 from 2001 so that makes two of those! Sheesh!


----------



## Slow Triathlete

2009 will see the revival of this thread and probably another that has to do with VaPer varients (not 100% Vapers, like Haddo's, Hearth & Home's Virginia Spice, Low Country Tobacco's Waccamaw, etc).


----------



## Bent Stem

Big D KC said:


> I looked just now and it is indeed from '06 Dan, and you got a deal! Would love to swap some with ya! Only problem is I have no idea when I'll get to it lol. I have so many samples still left from trades with you good fellas that I am just buying stuff now to stock up on! I have committed to only smoking through all the samples before cracking any new tins, so it could be a couple months!  I have to admit though a tin of the escudo is begging to be opened! Self control...self control!!
> 
> I also went ahead and picked up a tin of the McConnell's Scotish Cake tonight as well! And I rec'd the Maccanaw I bought from a fellow here, and I picked up another tin of McClellands Oriental #14 from 2001 so that makes two of those! Sheesh!


FYI, AFAIK, all the McClelland tins dates on the bottom are always a couple years old. I would guess that if you ordered any now they would all have '06, possibly '07 dates.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Just an FYI,

Once this site turns into Puff.com I will no longer be posting new reviews to this thread. I will, however, keep up with it on the other forums that I belong to.

Thanks


----------



## IHT

Bent Stem said:


> FYI, AFAIK, all the McClelland tins dates on the bottom are always a couple years old. I would guess that if you ordered any now they would all have '06, possibly '07 dates.


i don't agree with that. there are plenty of McC tins at the local shops (here around KC) with dates from '07 and '08 on them. i just don't think that Oriental #14 is all that popular. i found one recently from '97.

next time i see Mike i'll ask him if they hold onto tins before they ship them out.
last time i talked to him about tin dating, he explained the coding on the bottom as being three two digit codes: product #, batch #, year made. so, 140401 would be blend 14, 4th batch of 2001. 
but i will ask if he holds onto them for a while after they're made, which i doubt, if you ever check the dates of his "new" product lines that come out.
will be an interesting question.


----------



## RJpuffs

IHT said:


> i don't agree with that. there are plenty of McC tins at the local shops (here around KC) with dates from '07 and '08 on them. i just don't think that Oriental #14 is all that popular. i found one recently from '97.
> 
> next time i see Mike i'll ask him if they hold onto tins before they ship them out.
> last time i talked to him about tin dating, he explained the coding on the bottom as being three two digit codes: product #, batch #, year made. so, 140401 would be blend 14, 4th batch of 2001.
> but i will ask if he holds onto them for a while after they're made, which i doubt, if you ever check the dates of his "new" product lines that come out.
> will be an interesting question.


IHT is right, I have gotten 05, 06, 07 and even 08 (a month before purchase date). Its possible their warehouse is shipping FIFO, causing older tins to get left behind until stock dwindles?


----------



## Hermit

Slow Triathlete said:


> Just an FYI,
> 
> Once this site turns into Puff.com I will no longer be posting new reviews to this thread. I will, however, keep up with it on the other forums that I belong to.
> 
> Thanks


*¿Por que?*


----------



## Bent Stem

RJpuffs said:


> IHT is right, I have gotten 05, 06, 07 and even 08 (a month before purchase date). Its possible their warehouse is shipping FIFO, causing older tins to get left behind until stock dwindles?


IME, the ones I've ordered a few years ago, and then again more recently, were always about 2 years prior dated (maybe 20 tins or so total). Just stating my experience as I thought that's the way it usually must work. Don't have local shops to comment on that part of it.


----------



## WWhermit

Hermit said:


> *¿Por que?*


I would like to know the same. Why not?


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Just not interested in being in the mass media. Plus I don't believe in the fundamentals that Puff is portraying. I won't go into details because it is my opinion. Not bashing the site, it's just not my cup of tea.

I didn't join a marketing tool, I joined a cigar/pipe forum. And in my opinion this is now a marketing tool that is only interested in making money. If you don't believe me, remember how much advertising was on CS. Now count how much is on Puff."


----------



## IHT

Bent Stem said:


> IME, the ones I've ordered a few years ago, and then again more recently, were always about 2 years prior dated (maybe 20 tins or so total). Just stating my experience as I thought that's the way it usually must work. Don't have local shops to comment on that part of it.


i thought you could've meant that as well. in that case, you're probably right. i haven't had that experience personally...


----------



## Slow Triathlete

In the interest of all of the PMs that I have gotten and the feedback that I have gotten for this thread, I will continue it on Puff.com. I now realize that this thread has helped out a lot of people and for the overall good I'll keep it going.

Thanks everyone.

:tu


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Well, it's now 2009 and it is time to start this thread back up again. I have a few more blends that I have added to the list and I will put out a full list of what I have left to review in another email. I appreciate all of the feedback that I have received about this thread. I started it as just a way for me to get to know that wonderful world of VaPers but I have noticed that it has helped out quite a few people. Let us delve back into this and see what kind of fun we can have.

This review is going to focus on a relatively new tobacco. It is Low Country Tobacco's Waccamaw blend. Now for those of you who don't know, Low Country Tobacco is the actual store for smokingpipes.com. It is in Little River, SC which is about 40 miles from where I live. Yes, I'm that lucky. These blends are the result of a collaboration between Sykes Wilford (owner of smokingpipes.com) and Craig Tarlor (owner of Cornell & Diehl Tobaccos). As of right now there are 4 blends in this series.

Now for those who are VaPer purists I will warn you that this blend has some Izmir leaf in it, which is another spice tobacco that lends itself to this blend. However, since I cannot tell the difference between the taste of Perique and the taste of Izmir I thought that I would go ahead and throw this blend in the Showdown. Here is the actual description of the blend from their website:

_The __Waccamaw__River__ meanders through the eastern __Carolinas__, part of the __Pee Dee__River basin__, a region intertwined with the history of tobacco for three centuries. What finer homage to this heritage than a rich, hearty __Virginia__ flake? Bright leaf serving as the base is typical of the tobaccos grown in this region, while beautiful Red __Virginias__ lend it sweetness and structure. Perique and a dash of exotic __Izmir__ leaf complete this complex, satisfying flake._

Now for the review. 

When I popped the tin of this blend I was greeted by a wonderful smell. Sweet and sour with a lot of spiciness in there. I will warn everyone that I will compare this to GL Pease's Embarcadero blend quite a bit for reasons that I will explain in the summary below. This blend smelled a lot like Embarcadero when I whiffed it the first couple of times. This blend comes in flake form and the flakes are about the same size as Orlik's Golden Sliced. The blend arrived quite moist in the tin and all of my flakes were stuck together. I just dumped the whole thing out on a few paper towels and rubbed them all out so that they would dry out a little more thoroughly.

I filled the pipe with this blend using the 3 pack method all of the times that I smoked it so far. This worked out quite well. After drying the tobacco a bit this blend took to the first light and never stopped. After the blend got going my nose was greeted with the most intoxicating aroma of sweet Virginia, spicy Perique, and a sourness that I can only guess comes from the Izmir. It was delightful!

The first third of the bowl was pretty spicy and kept things interesting. There is A Lot of Perique in here. All of the components were playing off of each other and going in and out of the taste. The second third of the bowl all of the flavors and aromas seemed to blend together and really come to the forefront. It tickled and burned a bit from the spiciness when blown through the nose. Truly amazing!

The last part of this blend was more of the same. It settled down a bit towards the very end of the bowlful with the sourness taking the drivers seat near the end.

This blend is truly a great blend right out of the tin. I can't wait to see what a little age does to this tobacco. As I stated above, there is a ton of Perique in here and it lends to quite a bit of Nicotine as well. Now as most of you know, C & D makes all of the blends for GL Pease. I cannot help but think that this blend is Embarcadero with some Perique added into the mix. The tastes and smells are almost identical. However, the Waccamaw is about $1.50 cheaper for a tin than the Embarcadero. I'd be interested to hear from everyone on this one about whether they think there are definitely similarities or if I'm just imagining all of this.

If you like Perique bombs, then this blend is definitely one to try out. I believe that this one is definitely taking over the #6 spot because I love the amount of Perique they went with this one.

Here's the ratings so far:

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore 
5) H & H AJ's VaPer 
6) Low Country's Waccamaw
7) Peretti's Park Square
8) H & H Rolando's Own 
9) H & H Anniversary Kake 
10) G & H Louisiana Flake 
11) C & D Night Train 
12) H & H Louisiana Red
13) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
14) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
15) Dorchester 
16) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
17) McClelland Bulk 2015 
18) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
19) Kajun Kake 
20) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## mcdevster

i have heard that rmc's scottish cake contains burley - does anyone know if this is true?
this might explain why from time to time i get a flavor, all be it slightly, not unlike peterson's sherlock holmes from it..
but yeah a very great blend - with the choclatey escudo like virginia perique- meets something tangy.. almost fruity..


----------



## Thisisme

I enjoyed this thread very much. Being a brand new pipe smoker, it looks like I have a *lot *to look forward too 

I wanted to make it easier on myself to reference your reviews with your ratings in the future, so I added links to your reviews in your ranking list:

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore 
5) H & H AJ's VaPer
6) Low Country's Waccamaw
7) Peretti's Park Square
8) H & H Rolando's Own 
9) H & H Anniversary Kake 
10) G & H Louisiana Flake 
11) C & D Night Train
12) H & H Louisiana Red
13) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
14) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
15) Dorchester 
16) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
17) McClelland Bulk 2015 
18) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
19) Kajun Kake 
20) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## selleri

mcdevster said:


> i have heard that rmc's scottish cake contains burley - does anyone know if this is true?


At least Kohlhase & Kopp's website says it's made out of virginia, kentucky and perique.

ROBERT MC CONNELL
(dunno if this works, and if it does, it's in german).


----------



## hagen

selleri said:


> At least Kohlhase & Kopp's website says it's made out of virginia, kentucky and perique.
> 
> ROBERT MC CONNELL
> (dunno if this works, and if it does, it's in german).


i'm getting still more skeptical about those descriptions, really. though i'd agree that there might be "einer Prise Perique" (which translates, i believe, to "a little bit") in it, they also want us to believe it contains kentucky. i'm almost over-sensitive to the presence of kentucky in a blend, and i do not notice as much as a slight whiff of dark fired there. it might, of course, be some variant with very weak flavours, i can't say for sure.

anyway, my immediate impression of _scottish cake_ is that it contains virginia - and a bit of fruity flavouring. imo, it's a very fine blend (though very mild).


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## Slow Triathlete

selleri said:


> At least Kohlhase & Kopp's website says it's made out of virginia, kentucky and perique.
> 
> ROBERT MC CONNELL
> (dunno if this works, and if it does, it's in german).


Keep in mind that they didn't have "Perique" in the description until just recently.


----------



## hagen

Slow Triathlete said:


> Keep in mind that they didn't have "Perique" in the description until just recently.


that, too. it's rather confusing, really


----------



## mcdevster

i guess i'm not all that familiar with kentucky.. maybe i'm tasting that..


----------



## Darth Smoker

hagen said:


> ....i'm getting still more skeptical about those descriptions, really......


HH Ann Cake must have a ton of PG and Chocolate syrup, I'd smoke my first bowl but I am still waiting it to dry out.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Darth Smoker said:


> HH Ann Cake must have a ton of PG and Chocolate syrup, I'd smoke my first bowl but I am still waiting it to dry out.


I noticed that when I had my sample. I don't think that it is PG though. After pressing my own mixture I learned that it is best to press the tobacco when it is slightly moist so that all of the flavors and oils mix together. But because of this when you press it into a cake it is extremely wet when it comes out from the compression. Plus, unless you rub it out, it takes a long time to dry out.

Try rubbing it out to dry. Also, check the humidity of the room that you are drying it out in. A hygrometer from your cigar humidor will work if you have one. If it is above like 55% in there your tobacco won't dry out fast in there. This happened to me because I was trying to dry out my tobacco in a room that didn't have much air circulation and there were a bunch of indoor plants in there. I took out my hygrometer and learned that I was trying to dry out tobacco in a room with a RH of 75%!!

You live and you learn.


----------



## Big D KC

According to an interview with Russ Oulette on the Pipe Talk podcast (now defuncd) he absolutely does not use PG! Furthermore according to him, his philosophy is he believes in "drier tobacco is better tobacco" so I don't think that anything is purposely put there to keep anni kake moist. I think it's just like ST says, its just a by product of pressing that all that good stuff all together!

The 4oz sample I just got is fairly moist in the cake form also. I've just been grabbing a slice of the cake breaking off about 1/2 of it and rubbing it out, let it sit for about 20 to 30 minutes under a lamp and its ready to go! Good stuff! I just placed an order for more so I'll compare it for moisture content when it arrives.


----------



## nate560

the ann kake is always on the moist side i do the same as big d kc i rub it out let it dry for about 30 minutes and its ready to go. good stuff but every order has been very moist i dont think he uses anything artifical to keep it moist. so dry and enjoy


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Here we go with a discontinued Dunhill brand, Elizabethan Mixture. I have been lucky enough to put a few tins of this away and have had some loose in a mason jar for sometime. However, I have not smoked this in probably a year. I thought that it was time to bring this out and enter it into the VaPer Showdown.

Here is the tin description:

A distinctive flavorful blend pressed, darkened tobaccos with Perique added for character.

Not very descriptive, is it?!?! Well, let me elaborate on that. The blend comes in the traditional round tin with paper folded over the top of the blend. Upon first opening this tin you are greeted with a wonderfully sweet aroma paired with a bit of spiciness. This blend comes ribbon cut with colors ranging from bright yellow to dark brown with the brownish/black perique littered here and there.

Now I will let you know that when I first smoked a few bowls of this blend I could not figure out what all the hub-bub was with this blend. I found it to be a good Virginia blend, kind of boring with some perique mixed in. It wasn’t until I got around to about the 10th bowl that I noticed subtle characters and flavors coming in and out. There are several different Virginia tobaccos present in this blend and they all play a role in the finished product.

A lot of people have stated that this blend has a lot of perique in it and it isn’t for the faint of heart. I think that those people are wrong. While this does not have a minute amount of perique in it, it isn’t a perique bomb either.

The first 1/3 of the bowl was dominated by the flavors and sweetness of the Virginias. They came in and out with a hint of the perique in the background.

The middle 1/3 seemed a bit stronger with the peppery/spiciness of the perique,

The last 1/3 of the bowl everything seemed to come together and play off of each other. Towards the end the Virginias soured a bit but it added another flavor to the profile.

I really liked this blend and I find it hard to believe that Dunhill discontinued this blend. Oh well, that is just how it goes sometime. I do know that Altadis has come out with an “Elizabethan” substitute although I have not yet tried it. I think that this blend can take over the 11th place spot without any argument.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith’s St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore 
5) H & H AJ’s VaPer 
6) Low Country’s Waccamaw
7) Peretti’s Park Square
8) H & H Rolando’s Own 
9) H & H Anniversary Kake 
10) G & H Louisiana Flake 
11) Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
12) C & D Night Train 
13) H & H Louisiana Red
14) Reiner’s Long Golden Flake 
15) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
16) Dorchester 
17) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
18) McClelland Bulk 2015 
19) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
20) Kajun Kake 
21) Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## Slow Triathlete

*Solani 633*

Now here is a blend that I cannot believe that I forgot to put into the Showdown before now. In truth, I purchased a 100g tin of this and smoked over half of the tin and put it into a mason jar for a little longer term storage. Well I just found it the other day and the label on top says 14Mar2008. So this blend has a little age on it so it should be better than I remember it.

Here's what the tin description states:

_A matured virginia, pressed flake, with premium perique._

*Pre-Light*
The tin aroma is very nice. I reminds me a lot of Robert McConnell's Scottish Cake in that I has a very heavy and sweet dried prune/fig aroma to it. And of course with just a hint of spice from the Perique. Very good. This comes in flake form in the tin but it looks like I rubbed the whole tin out before I put it into the jar. Whoops I don't usually do that but oh well. I will say that when rubbed out it resembles Hal O The Wynd as far as shape and length of the strands.

Since these are pretty long strands I chose a pipe with a deeper chamber. I picked a Kurt Huhn Zulu shape.

*First ½*For the first 15 puffs or so this blend bit my tongue a bit. Not sure if my tongue was ragged out already from another blend or not but the biting eventually went away. The taste of this blend is almost purely Virginia. There is a bit of Perique whisping about in the background but it is certainly not a major player as of yet.

*Second ½*
The blend really hasn't changed much throughout. The Virginias are still very dominant. The strength slowly builds in this blend topping out at about a medium strength.

*Summary*
Well I know that I am going to make some people mad with this summary but I did not particularly care for this blend all that much. Let me explain as there are several factors involved. First off, the blend to me was kind of ho-hum. Yes, the Virginias were very tasty but I think that I was expecting something more. The Perique amount in this blend is very low. It really doesn't add much to the blend and it certainly was not enough to keep the blend from biting in the beginning. I know that this blend is some people's cup of tea but it is not mine. Second, for most of the Solani line you can only buy 100g tins. I really never like not having the option of trying a smaller amount of a blend before I commit to buying a larger tin. For this blend, that decision is pretty much taken out of your hands. Occasionally you can find 633 in a 50g tin but you have to look. Also the price for this blend is pretty high. The 100g tin hovers somewhere around $20. This puts it in my eyes as more of a boutique blend or something that I would reward myself with every once in a while. For it to be like that for me, it would have to be a much better blend. I feel that there are much better VaPer blends out there for a better price.

1)McConnell Scottish Cake 
2)Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3)Escudo 
4)GL Pease Filmore 
5)H & H AJ's VaPer 
6)Low Country's Waccamaw 
7)Peretti's Park Square
8)H & H Rolando's Own 
9)H & H Anniversary Kake 
10)G & H Louisiana Flake 
11)Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
12)C & D Night Train 
13)H & H Louisiana Red
14)Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
15)Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
16)Dorchester 
17)Solani #633
18)Luxury Bullseye Flake 
19)McClelland Bulk 2015 
20)GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
21)Kajun Kake 
22)Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## RJpuffs

Slow Triathlete said:


> *Solani 633*
> ...
> but I did not particularly care for this blend all that much.
> ...


I agree. Until I read this I didn't even realize that it was a VaPer - I thought it was a straight VA (who reads labels!). I found it flat and boring, sour in taste in fact, and it bites like girl puppy.


----------



## Jaxon67

Bump

Great info on VaPers


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Man, I really let this go. I kept up with it on another forum. I will post all of the new additions since this was left off here in a moment.


----------



## Slow Triathlete

“Mamma Mia, that’s a spicy meatball!!”

Does everyone remember that alka seltzer commercial? Or am I really dating myself here? Well, nonetheless, that is what was going through my mind halfway through a bowl of Cool Hand Fluke. There is a ton of Perique in there and it is definitely tasty. I read online that there is around 40% Perique in this blend. That’s quite stout considering that most VaPer blends have anywhere from 5-15%. To release a blend that is this muscular is very daring and also considering that it came from John Patton, who is a Burley freak, it is all the more surprising.

I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical when I first read about this blend. But after seeing a few reviews from guys that I really respect and believe that we have the same tastes in tobacco I started to change my mind. John was kind enough to send me a sample of this (along with most of the other blends that he makes) for me to include in this showdown. Thanks again John you’re a stand up guy.

Ok, off to the review.

If you ever have problems smelling Perique in a blend then take a whiff of this one. The spicy pepperyness (yes, I just made that word up) definitely is prominent when you first get a whiff of this blend. I was in heaven. The sweetness of the Virginias is definitely there but for once they are way in the background. 

The blend was dry when it got to me but in a good way. All I had to do was to let it sit out for 15 minutes but this was more out of habit than necessity. I have smoked this blend in many shapes and sizes but I found that it tastes best to me in a straight billiard. This blend packs great and the course cut basically falls into the bowl and lighting was especially easy.

The first third of the bowl was a bit mixed up. It was like a symphony warming up and there wasn’t a clear theme as of yet. The Virginias were all there and were great but the true star was the perique and its greatness was about to shine through.

The middle to the end of the bowl was when everything started happening. The perique lined up front and center and was always there in the forefront. What was interesting to me was what was going on in the background. Usually with VaPer blends the perique is constantly in the background kind of like an old friend while the Virginias or Virginia/burley do their thing up front. This was an interesting turn of the roles where the Virginias were shining through and mingling in the background. It was very, very interesting. It tasted great also!

Will you like this blend? Yes, no, probably, maybe would all be good answers to that question. I will say that this blend it really different from most of the other VaPer blends out there and for that reason alone it would pique my interest. With that said, everyone has their own tastes. Heck a buddy of mine works at a cigar store and one of his regular customers gets a pound of Latakia mixed with a pound of Perique and that is his everyday smoke. I have often wondered what that blend smells like but I digress. What I’m trying to say is that everyone is different and some people will like this blend and some won’t. Just like any other blend. Please don’t let the amount of Perique that is in this blend scare you off. It really is a blend that everyone should try.

1)McConnell Scottish Cake 
2)Samuel Gawith’s St. James Flake 
3)Escudo 
4)GL Pease Filmore 
5)H & H AJ’s VaPer 
6)Low Country’s Waccamaw 
7)Peretti’s Park Square
8)John Patton’s Cool Hand Fluke
9)H & H Rolando’s Own 
10)H & H Anniversary Kake 
11)G & H Louisiana Flake 
12)Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
13)C & D Night Train 
14)H & H Louisiana Red
15)Reiner’s Long Golden Flake 
16)Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
17)Dorchester 
18)Solani #633
19)Luxury Bullseye Flake 
20)McClelland Bulk 2015 
21)GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
22)Kajun Kake 
23)Luxury Navy Flake


----------



## Slow Triathlete

Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices

Hmmmm, the tin states that there is Perique in here but I just do not smell it or taste it in the blend. Even with most blends that claim to have a “whisper” of perique you can still detect it in there but not in this one. Therefore this will be a short review.

I apparently have had a tin of this laying around for almost a year but it was hidden in a stack of Scottish Cake tins. One night I was digging through the cellar looking for something different when I came upon it. I popped the tin and a figgy, straw-like aroma met my nose. It smelled like a great Virginia but like I stated above I could not smell any perique.

This is a flake blend with an appearance and size very similar to Stokkebye’s Luxury Navy Flake. The moisture amount was great and this broke apart very easily. I still let it sit out for about 15 minutes before loading it into the pipe.

Lighting this blend was extremely easy and once lit this blend did not need much help. The taste and aroma throughout the whole smoke was pure Virginia. While not as flavorful as Full Virginia or Best Brown this blend definitely came in 3rd for my favorite Virginia blends for right now. However, this is not a Virginia Showdown (although this is a great idea. Someone should start one) it is a VaPer Showdown and this blend failed miserably in the VaPer realm.

In summary, this is a really, really good Virginia. It actually surprised me with how good it is versus how much a tin of this blend it. It is currently less than $7 at smokingpipes.com. I will be stocking up on this for my Virginia fixes. I would not recommend this as a VaPer to anyone however. Therefore it is down to the bottom for this one.

******Edit********
When I spoke about the blend having the appearance of Stokkebye's Luxury Navy Flake this apparently only applies to the tinned version. I ordered a bulk pound of this and it arrived in a miss-mash of long flake and broken up flake. 

2010 Update
This has become my everyday smoke. It is very subtle and easy to smoke. While not completely a VaPer I have been able to start picking up the small amount of Perique that is in this blend.

1)McConnell Scottish Cake 
2)Samuel Gawith’s St. James Flake 
3)Escudo 
4)GL Pease Filmore 
5)H & H AJ’s VaPer 
6)Low Country’s Waccamaw 
7)Peretti’s Park Square
8)John Patton’s Cool Hand Fluke
9)H & H Rolando’s Own 
10)H & H Anniversary Kake 
11)G & H Louisiana Flake 
12)Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
13)C & D Night Train 
14)H & H Louisiana Red
15)Reiner’s Long Golden Flake 
16)Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
17)Dorchester 
18)Solani #633
19)Luxury Bullseye Flake 
20)McClelland Bulk 2015 
21)GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
22)Kajun Kake 
23)Luxury Navy Flake
24)Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices


----------



## Slow Triathlete

C & D Bayou Morning Flake

I cannot believe that I missed this one in my Showdown. I have had an unopened, bulging tin of this for quite some time. I had not opened this one partly because I was afraid that because of the bulging then I was probably going to shoot my hand off when I opened it or something like that. So with my trusty dishtowel I grabbed the tin and popped the seal. There was a loud boom but not nearly the force to which I had expected.

Now with bulging tins you can expect two things. One - some great fermented tobacco, or two - a rank tobacco that is infiltrated with either bacteria or fungus. Fortunately for me it was some great fermented tobacco. The smell that came out of the tin was a bit earthy and peaty (is that even a word?). The tobacco was already starting to show my sugar crystals.

When this blend is rubbed out it comes to be really long ribbons of tobacco. I had been forewarned that this blend usually comes extremely damp so I spread the tobacco out on some newspaper and proceeded to let it dry for about 2 hours. Even then it was still a bit damp. But it packed really nicely and lit up great.

It is hard to describe this blend but I have to say that it was very, very earthy. It was almost like smoking dirt…..but in a good way. I believe that this dark flavor comes from the stoving of this blend. It has the dark fragrance and taste of Kajun Kake but it has a lot more sweetness to it that Kajun. Despite this blend still being a bit damp it burned very well and required only a few relights.

About halfway through the bowl a bit of spicy sourness came up through this blend. It was a nice mix of sweet and sour. This blend is pretty heavy and probably will not be good on an empty stomach.

This is a great overall blend. There is plenty of perique in this blend to go around. This blend is unique in that it is a VaPer but it is also stoved which you do not find frequently in the VaPer realm. I like it for a “change of pace” tobacco but it will not be in my regular rotation. This one goes in slot #15.

1)McConnell Scottish Cake 
2)Samuel Gawith’s St. James Flake 
3)Escudo 
4)GL Pease Filmore 
5)H & H AJ’s VaPer 
6)Low Country’s Waccamaw 
7)Peretti’s Park Square
8)John Patton’s Cool Hand Fluke
9)H & H Rolando’s Own 
10)H & H Anniversary Kake 
11)G & H Louisiana Flake 
12)Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
13)C & D Night Train 
14)H & H Louisiana Red
15)C & D Bayou Morning Flack
16)Reiner’s Long Golden Flake 
17)Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
18)Dorchester 
19)Solani #633
20)Luxury Bullseye Flake 
21)McClelland Bulk 2015 
22)GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
23)Kajun Kake 
24)Luxury Navy Flake
25)Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices


----------



## Slow Triathlete

After a long extended break here is a new review for your reading pleasure.

In this installment I am taking on Former’s Straight Grain Flake. This is kind of a sleeper blend it seems that many people pass over. In my opinion, all of Former’s blends seem to be sleepers. Heck, there are only 5 reviews of this blend over on tobaccoreviews.com. I just happened to run across this blend as a reference in another tobacco review that I was reading. Then I went to smokingpipes.com and there it was. And it is a cheaper blend as well. Right now it is listed right around $7 for 2 ounces. I have not seen this offered in bulk anywhere.

Here is what the blend description states:

A full bodied but amazingly smooth dark flake tobacco prepared from traditional old world recipes and methods. A good pinch of mellow, yet spicy, Perique brings out the rich flavor in this zesty blend. 

The appearance in the tin of this blend is similar to Stokkebye’s Luxury Navy Flake but a lot darker. The tin aroma is a mix of the dark, tangy, sweet Virginias along with the underlying spice of the perique. There is also a hint of leather in there as well. This is one of my favorite smelling blends in the tin. It doesn’t really smell like any other blend. I opened several other Vapers and stuck my nose in all of them and none of them smelled as good to me as this one.

I rubbed out the flake a little but to dry for a few minutes before packing this in. I have started using the Air Pocket Method for my flakes and broken flakes and that is what I used with this blend. I smoked this in a Peterson 268 Zulu shape as it seems the best for me with this blend.

Lighting was very easy. Once rubbed out this blend is made up of very narrow strips of tobacco which take to flame very easily. This blend has a very dark Virginia taste to start off with. There are some lighter flavored Virginias in there that provide high notes, perhaps Red or maybe even Lemon Virginia. I’m not sure but they are delicious. The perique is there in the background but it really comes to the forefront after about 1/3 of the bowl. Then it kicks in and rounds this blend out very nicely.

It has a fuller taste and strength than a lot of the blends in this showdown. Now this is not to say that this is a nicotine bomb like Night Train seems to be but it is definitely more full than any of the Hearth and Home blends. The taste and strength last through the rest of the bowl and never turns sour near the end.

Overall this is a very, very enjoyable blend. While it is not my favorite smoke it is definitely in my regular rotation. As stated it is also one of the better bargains out there and I will be ordering more tins throughout the years to lie down in the cellar. This will be one that really gets better with age in my opinion. And because of all of these factors it now enters in at spot #5.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith’s St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore
5) Former’s Straight Grain Flake 
6) H & H AJ’s VaPer 
7) Low Country’s Waccamaw 
8) Peretti’s Park Square
9) John Patton’s Cool Hand Fluke
10) H & H Rolando’s Own 
11) H & H Anniversary Kake 
12) G & H Louisiana Flake 
13) Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
14) C & D Night Train 
15) H & H Louisiana Red
16) C & D Bayou Morning Flack
17) Reiner’s Long Golden Flake 
18) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
19) Dorchester 
20) Solani #633
21) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
22) McClelland Bulk 2015 
23) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
24) Kajun Kake 
25) Luxury Navy Flake
26) Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices


----------



## ultramag

I know I mentioned it to you elsewhere SlowTri, but I knew you'd like the Former's Straight Grain. The way everyone hoards things up nowadays I kinda hate to see you go public with this info for this blend. 

It's an ultimate sleeper IMO. Hardly ever mentioned, excellent value, and very much a top shelf Va/Per. Excellent review as always. :tu


----------



## Slow Triathlete

*C & D's Poplar Camp*

I have to admit, when SailorJack (friend on another forum) first posted about this blend and wrote to me to ask if I wanted a sample to try in order to review it for the VaPer Showdown I had to scramble and look this blend up. I have to say that this is a VaPer that I had never heard of. And in my opinion it is better than most other VaPers that C & D puts out so I'm not sure why they don't advertise this one any more than they do.

The blend description is:

Stoved red Virginia is combined with bright Virginia ribbon and restoved. Then red Virginia, Perique and unsweetened black Cavendish are added."

It is basically their blend #457 Yorktown with Perique added.

I think that the main reason that I like this blend by far and away from other C & D VaPers is that it does not have that earthy, peaty smell and taste that a lot of their other blends do. This is surprising to me with as much stoving as goes into this blend. They must be using a different type of Virginia for this one or something but it tastes and smells different from their other offerings. It is similar to the bulk version of Bayou Morning (not the flake) but this one tastes a lot brighter to me.

This blend packs great and is made up of different colored short ribbons I'm assuming that are cut off of a larger flake. Lighting this blend was particularly easy as it was at the right humidity right off the bat. The taste is pretty much the same throughout the bowl which is a plus to me. Too many times the blend goes sour in the last 1/3 and it turns me off. The perique does come in a bit more in the middle and stays put until the end of the bowl. This one is a slow burning one as well. About a medium sized bowl lasted me about an hour.

Overall I was pretty surprised by this blend. For a seldom mentioned VaPer this one is definitely flying below the radar. It is a bit hard to find however. The only place that I see it offered is on the actual C & D website. At this writing there were no online retailers that carry it as far as I can find. However, it is still a good deal from C & D and well worth ordering. I am definitely going to be getting more of this.

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake 
3) Escudo 
4) GL Pease Filmore
5) Former's Straight Grain Flake 
6) H & H AJ's VaPer 
7) Low Country's Waccamaw 
8) Peretti's Park Square
9) John Patton's Cool Hand Fluke
10) H & H Rolando's Own 
11) H & H Anniversary Kake 
12) G & H Louisiana Flake 
13) C & D Poplar Camp
14) Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
15) C & D Night Train 
16) H & H Louisiana Red
17) C & D Bayou Morning Flake
18) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
19) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
20) Dorchester 
21) Solani #633
22) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
23) McClelland Bulk 2015 
24) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
25) Kajun Kake 
26) Luxury Navy Flake
27) Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices


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## Slow Triathlete

*GL Pease Tribute*
I will state up front that this is one of my top 3 VaPer tobaccos. With that said, it is hard for me to smoke it because I have such a limited supply. I was lucky enough to acquire 3 tins of this over the years and every time I smoke some I realize that it is a pleasure that has an ending.

This is a special blend that was distributed in the shadow of the tragedy that happened in New York on September 11th, 2001. Like most Americans, Mr. Pease felt a need to do something so he created this blend and donated all of the profits. There is a great write-up about the process on his website here:

G. L. Pease - Tibute

Here is the tin description:
_Tribute is a special blend of red, lemon and stoved red Virginias, perique and toasted cavendish tobacco's. The blend was created by Gregory L. Pease. Production and distribution by Craig and Patty Tarler, Cornell & Diehl, Inc.

The tribute was written by Ernest A. Carabillo III._

All profits from the sale of this tobacco were donated to the "Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund". Produced in September, 2001.

From what I have been able to research on the internet there was a First Edition in 2001 and then a Second Edition in 2002. I also found some references that C & D may have distributed this blend afterwards under the name of C & D Nassau but I could not find anything on their website or on tobaccoreviews.com about this blend.

In my opinion, this is Mr. Pease's opus for VaPers.

My review is from a tin from the First Edition and has aged for over 9 years. Because I never tried this when it was first released this review is completely based on the aged tobacco.

The tin aroma is excellent and certainly all VaPer. When I usually open a fresh tin of any VaPer I can define the different components with my nose. In this case, and I am assuming because of the aging, the aromas have combined into one distinct smell that is intoxicating. The ribbon cut makes this blend very easy to pack and also to light. Once lit, this blend only needed one re-light.

The flavors of this blend immediately make themselves known. The aged Virginia and Perique are intertwined as you smoke this blend. There are no real moments where the Perique or the Virginia take over but rather a constant stream of both. The flavors and strength of this blend increases the closer that you get to the bottom of the bowl. While certainly not overpowering you will definitely feel it as you smoke this blend down. I never tasted the Toasted Cavendish but I did get the sense that it added fullness to this blend that would not have been there if it had been absent. It also seems to keep a balance between all of the tobaccos as well.

Overall this is one of the best blends that I have had the pleasure to try. Not only because of the blend itself but because of the meaning behind why this blend was put together and the fellowship that developed because of it. Mr. Pease I applaud what you, the Tarlers, and everyone else that had a hand in getting this blend out there went through.

I lost a friend in New York. My brother lost his best friend in the Pentagon. There were so many people directly and indirectly affected by what happened. It was a low point in our nation's history but overall brought us closer together and made a much stronger nation.

This year (2011) will mark the 10 Year Anniversary of what happened on that day. While I understand that this was a limited edition and I certainly understand the reason for keeping it that way, if Greg ever decides to revive this blend either for an anniversary or under another name you can be sure that I will be ordering a lot of this.

"On 11th September, 2001, terrorists killed thousands of Americans. The blow came without provocation or reason, and the tragedy has left emptiness in the hearts of people from all nations.

"Those who seek to defeat us aim to kindle the fires of hatred and despair in our hearts, but they will not. We are united. We will prevail.
"In the years to come, do not forget that hatred took our loved ones away. Please smoke this tobacco in the spirit of peace, and never forget those we lost.

"In the middle of the darkest night 
In the glowing of the tiniest ember 
We will remember" 
-EC III

1) McConnell Scottish Cake 
2) Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake
3) GL Pease Tribute 
4) Escudo 
5) GL Pease Filmore
6) Former's Straight Grain Flake 
7) H & H AJ's VaPer 
8) Low Country's Waccamaw 
9) Peretti's Park Square
10) John Patton's Cool Hand Fluke
11) H & H Rolando's Own 
12) H & H Anniversary Kake 
13) G & H Louisiana Flake 
14) C & D Poplar Camp
15) Dunhill Elizabethan Mixture
16) C & D Night Train 
17) H & H Louisiana Red
18) C & D Bayou Morning Flake
19) Reiner's Long Golden Flake 
20) Treasures of Ireland - Limerick 
21) Dorchester 
22) Solani #633
23) Luxury Bullseye Flake 
24) McClelland Bulk 2015 
25) GL Pease Telegraph Hill 
26) Kajun Kake 
27) Luxury Navy Flake
28) Dan Tobacco's Tordenskjold Virginia Slices


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## cakeanddottle

Allow me to give this somewhat old thread a bump. 

I can't tell you how many times I referenced this when I got my first tin of Escudo and realized I loved Va/Pers. An invaluable resource that is only missing a Rattrays entry to be complete. Thank you Slow Triathlete!


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